MARKEY CHALLENGES BUSH ADMINISTRATION PLAN TO CUT OFF DATA COLLECTION OF KEY GLOBAL WARMING INDICATORS

Washington, DC - Representative Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Chairman of the newly-created Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming and a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, sent a letter today to Administrator Guy Caruso of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) requesting information about reports that the EIA may dramatically scale back its collection of critical global warming emissions data.  Data collected by EIA from power generators on Form EIA-767 is essential to efforts by the Environmental Protection Agency, and state and local regulators, as they develop and implement air pollution control, energy, and utility regulatory programs.  Rep. Markey wrote Administrator Caruso in response to reports that indicate the EIA may alter Form EIA-767, a survey that the agency has regularly undertaken to better understand emissions from the power sector, significantly reducing its utility to regulators and the public.

In his letter, Rep. Markey wrote, “At a time when there is consensus on the need to address global warming by the President, Congress and many states and cities, I am concerned that EIA’s failure to collect the appropriate data will undermine efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the most significant global warming pollutant.”

Rep. Markey said, “This Administration has always been allergic to science, and now they may alter data collection on global warming emissions in a way that would hurt our ability to understand and respond to this potential environmental catastrophe.  Like a child trying to become invisible by covering his own eyes, the Bush Administration apparently thinks it can escape the reality of global warming by blinding its data-collectors.  This is both foolish and dangerous.”

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