A DRAMATIC plan to combat climate change has been revealed by US President Barack Obama.

His Clean Power Plan is the biggest commitment to cutting planet warming greenhouse gases that the US has ever made and it is hoped it will put pressure on other countries to follow suit.

The final version of the plan was revealed yesterday by the White House and it details even stronger action than earlier drafts.

If the new regulations survive challenges from Republicans and the power industry they will kick start changes that will end with the closure of hundreds of coal-fired power stations while more investment is made in renewable energy sources.

Obama sees the plan as a key part of his legacy, second only to his Affordable Health Care Act.

Calling the new regulations “the biggest, most important step we’ve ever taken to combat climate change,” he added: “Climate change is not a problem for another generation, not any more.”

It is hoped his plan will put pressure on countries like India and Brazil to do likewise ahead of the international conference on climate change scheduled for Paris in December. The Obama strategy, if put into place, could help prevent the world’s atmosphere heating up to catastrophic levels as the US is second only to China in its production of greenhouse gases.

HARMFUL

HOWEVER, outraged opponents have attacked the plan as “a war on coal” and have vowed to mount legal challenges against it.


The protesters are particularly incensed at the toughening up of the rules over power plant emissions. The draft plan published last year suggested a cut of 30 per cent by 2030 but yesterday’s revised version ruled that a 32 per cent cut is necessary.

“Power plants are the single biggest source of harmful carbon pollution that contributes to climate change,” said Obama. “Until now, there have been no federal limits to the amount of carbon pollution plants dump in the air.”

Power plants will also have to use more renewable sources of energy such as solar power and wind, raising the share of generating capacity from these sources to 28 per cent.

At the moment more than one third of the US’s electricity supply comes from coal-fired plants and opponents of the Obama plan claim their closure will hike up consumers’ electricity bills.

Each state is to be responsible for cutting its emissions and the new rules state that a final plan of how they intend to do this should be drawn up by 2018.

Some state governors have already rebelled, saying they will refuse to draw up any plans. In an unprecedented letter to all 50 governors, Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (pictured above, right) urged them to fight the plan.

Attorney generals from more than a dozen states are already preparing legal challenges and it is estimated that almost half of the States in the US will join legal action against the plan, meaning it could end up in the Supreme Court.

States such asWest Virginia and Wyoming, with economies reliant on coal mining or cheap electricity from coal-fired power plants, are leading the action.

“West Virginia will go to court and we will challenge this,” said attorney general Patrick Morrisey. “We think this regulation is terrible for the consumers of the state of West Virginia. It’s going to lead to reduced jobs, higher electricity rates, and really will put stress on the reliability of the power grid. The worst part of this proposal is that it’s flatly illegal under the Clean Air Act and the Constitution, and we intend to challenge it vigorously.”

Luke Popovich, vice president of communications for the National Mining Association: “This plan is all pain and no gain. That’s why state leaders across the country are coming to the same conclusion – that we should not sacrifice our power system to an unworkable plan built on a faulty interpretation of the law.”


FINANCIAL BENEFITS

HOWEVER, the Environment Protection Agency (EPA), which will administer the regulations, claims the financial benefits of the plan could be as much as $54 billion on a total cost of $8.4 billion.


“Some special interest critics will tell you that it can’t be done,” said Gina McCarthy of the EPA (pictured left). “They’ll say we have to focus on the economy at the expense of the environment. They’ll tell you EPA’s plan will turn the lights off and send utility bills through the roof but they are wrong.”

The financial bonus is disputed by opponents who claim it will make electric bills rocket.

“It will make the cost of electricity higher for millions of Americans,” said Florida Senator Marco Rubio. “If you’re a single mom in Tampa, Florida, and your electric bill goes up by $30 a month, that is catastrophic.”

If individual States refuse to submit plans, a template will be imposed on them and the deadline for compliance has been extended by two years to 2022 to allow more time.

Obama maintains urgent action is needed as renewable sources currently supply only 5 per cent of US electricity compared with 37 per cent from coal, 31 per cent from natural gas and 19 per cent from nuclear power.

The plan is not enough on its own to prevent the atmospheric temperature rising to an irreversible level but if the world’s other major economies take similar action it is hoped that the worst effects of climate change could be prevented.

“It’s the linchpin of the administration’s domestic effort and international effort on climate change,” said Durwood Zaelke, president of research organisation, the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development. “It raises the diplomatic stakes in the run-up to Paris. He can take it on the road and use it as leverage with other big economies – China, India, Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia.”

While the Republican presidential hopefuls have denounced the plan, Democrat presidential runners like Hilary Clinton have vowed to stick to it if they win power.

The American public is also slowly converting to the need for change.

While only 38 per cent say it is a top priority, this is still a ten percentage point increase in just one year.