Carbon regulation could hit 1 million U.S. firms: study

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The prospect of U.S. regulation of climate-warming carbon dioxide has sparked a pre-emptive outcry from the Chamber of Commerce, which warned of bureaucratic gridlock if proposed limits are put in place.

In a report to be released on Tuesday, the pro-business organization projected such regulation would affect more than 1 million U.S. businesses and create such a regulatory backlog that it could stall economic development.

But a former Environmental Protection Agency attorney who now works for the Natural Resources Defense Council advocacy group said such talk is an effort to fan hysteria and avoid regulation.

The next president will probably have to deal with this issue in the first six months of the next administration, said William Kovacs, the chamber’s expert on environment and regulatory affairs.

The chamber said proposed regulations would affect businesses that emit over 250 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. On average, that means any business that spends more than $70,000 on oil or natural gas each year on stationary equipment, rather than in vehicles, the report said.

Reuters