The U.S. Congress began work on a bill that would fundamentally change the way American factories and power plants use and supply energy as part of the Obama administration's drive to cut harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Over the next five weeks the committee will debate and fine-tune a Democratic draft bill that would drastically reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and other industrial emissions that scientists say contribute to climate problems. At the bill's core is a "cap and trade" plan to reduce carbon emissions -- lowering them by 20 percent by 2020, 42 percent by 2030 and 83 percent by 2050, with 2005 as a base year. The House panel's work comes a few days after the Environmental Protection Agency formally announced that greenhouse gas emissions, which are being blamed for extreme weather, the drying up of major rivers, polar ice melting and endangering of more species, is also a danger to human health. If Congress cannot agree on a climate control bill, Obama is expected to order the EPA to impose new regulations to address the problem.
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