Washington — Pres. Obama’s plan to address global climate change through new carbon dioxide emission controls on new and existing power plants drew a range of responses from the chemical and fertilizer industries. Obama outlined his proposals in a June 25 speech at Georgetown University, noting that none of the measures in his plan require congressional action and can instead be accomplished through federal regulations. Critics of the plan denounced it as a job-killing “war on coal,” and both The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) expressed concern about rising natural gas prices due to increased demand. “As has been the case in the past, we are concerned about fuel switching that might occur when power plants are forced to use natural gas,” TFI’s Kathy Mathers told Green Markets. “That could cause a rise in the price we pay for natural gas/energy prices as a result of the limits on power plants, which would force them to switch to natural gas. At a time when the U.S. is experiencing a manufacturing renaissance, the president’s plan has the potential to impact that positive development by causing natural gas prices to rise.” ARA said that while it supports efforts to promote renewable energy such as wind, solar power, and biofuels, it also supports an “all of the above” approach when it comes to making the U.S. more energy independent. “Federal policies that promote the building of more natural gas power plant facilities in the U.S. and natural-gas vehicles, while limiting the use of other energy sources such as coal, could diminish or limit supplies for natural gas for use by the domestic fertilizer industry,” ARA’s Richard Gupton told Green Markets. “If President Obama’s new coal policies are put in place that decrease demand for coal in the U.S., the U.S. coal industry will continue to increase exports to counties such as China.”
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