In This Issue:

- Energy and Climate Debate

- Congress

- Administration

- Department of Defense

- Department of Energy

- Department of Interior

- Department of State

- Department of Treasury

- Environmental Protection Agency

- Governmental Accountability Office

- Nuclear Regulatory Commission

- International

- States

- Miscellaneous

- Excerpt from Energy and Climate Debate:

President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping jointly pledged November 11 in Beijing to make significant CO2 reductions in the next two decades. The United States will reduce its net greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025, accelerating the pace of reductions already planned by 2020. China will peak its CO2 emissions no later than 2030, by which point the country will obtain 20 percent of its energy supply from non-fossil fuel sources. China’s commitment marks the first time the country has pledged to stop its rapidly increasing emissions; the nation has previously resisted calls for reductions, saying that as a developing country, the pollution increases are necessary for its growth. China is the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter, and the United States ranks second. The surprise joint announcement precedes the 20th annual COP/MOP, scheduled to begin December 1 in Lima, Peru, and it further builds momentum for next year’s international climate negotiations in Paris. The two countries had pledged to make their commitments by this coming March. The United States and China join the European Union in making early commitments for Paris. European Union leaders agreed in October to set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to at least 40 percent of 1990 levels by 2030.

The United States committed in 2009 to reducing emissions 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020. The new goal will double the pace of carbon reduction, from an average 1.2 percent from 2005-2020 to an average of 2.3 percent to 2.8 percent between 2020 and 2025. China will need to add 800-1,000 GW of nuclear, solar, wind, and other zero-emissions energy generation by 2030 in order to meet its target, as well as scale up its cap and trade program or potentially implement a carbon tax. The country plans to launch a national carbon trading market in 2016 that could become fully operational in 2020. China is currently testing pilot emissions trading systems programs in seven provinces.