As EPA Rules Greenhouse Gases Endanger Public Health, a Discussion on Obama's Climate Change Policies

The EPA announcement came on the first day of the COP15 climate summit here in Copenhagen. The European Commission applauded the decision saying it would be a boost to the negotiations aimed at crafting a new global agreement to curb greenhouse gases.

President Obama is attending the talks on the summit’s last day. He is expected to commit the US to an emissions cut of 17 percent by 2020 compared to 2005 levels, which amounts to around four percent of the world standard of 1990 levels. That falls far short of the cuts recommended by the world’s top scientific body on global warming, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. They have called on developed countries to cut emissions by between 25 to 40 percent of 1990 levels.

For a discussion on US policy on climate change we are joined by two guests. John Hickenlooper is the mayor of Denver. He is participating in a panel discussion on the role of public transportation in reducing carbon emissions. He won the 2009 Mayors’ Climate Protection Award for a large city. And Damon Moglen is the Global Warming Campaign Director for Greenpeace USA.

John Hickenlooper, mayor of Denver.

Damon Moglen, Global Warming Campaign Director for Greenpeace USA.

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