For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
May 23, 2007

Statement by the President on the Decline of U.S. Carbon Dioxide Emissions for 2006

White House News

I was pleased to receive the Energy Information Administration's report today, which includes its "flash estimate" of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions for 2006. The report shows that emissions declined 78 million metric tons over 2005, or 1.3 percent, while our economy grew 3.3 percent. That means CO2 intensity decreased by 4.5 percent - the largest annual improvement since 1990 - putting us well ahead of what is needed annually to meet my greenhouse gas intensity reduction goal of 18% by 2012.

In 2001, I outlined fundamental principles to guide a scientifically sound and effective effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In 2002, I committed this country to reduce our economy's greenhouse gas intensity - how much we emit per unit of the GDP - by 18% by 2012. Since then, we have moved forward with an effective climate change policy that is science-based, encourages research and investment in the technologies needed to solve the problem, and takes advantage of the power of markets.

We are effectively confronting the important challenge of global climate change through regulations, public-private partnerships, incentives, and strong economic investment. New policies at the federal, state, and local levels - such as my initiative to reduce by 20 percent our projected use of gasoline within 10 years - promise even more progress. I have called on Congress to pass this legislation quickly, and I have also directed the EPA and the Departments of Transportation, Energy, and Agriculture to take the first steps toward regulations, using my 20-in-10 plan as a starting point. At the same time, we will continue to lead internationally through sensible partnerships promoting development and deployment of clean energy technologies, such as the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, which includes China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Australia.

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