Some lawmakers cool to guv's climate views

They fear Huntsman's positions will hinder shale development

Some lawmakers say the public positions Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. has taken on fighting climate change and promoting renewable energy could handicap development of coal and oil shale in Utah.

Rep. Michael Noel, R-Kanab, told fellow members of the Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Interim Committee Wednesday that the Western Climate Initiative's stating that humans are causing global warming is "not science."

During a visit in May by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Huntsman signed the initiative, which calls for Western states to set limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

"That's not data-based. That's not factual-based. And there's enough unknowns out there on this whole issue of man-caused global warming," Noel said.

He acknowledged "the Earth has been warming, and we used to have glaciers." But he asked, "So why do we think we have global warming from what we do here in Utah?"

Rep. Roger Barrus, R-Centerville, said the Governor's Blue Ribbon Council on Climate Change is supposed to report to Huntsman and make policy recommendations. "We're concerned that the governor's getting out ahead of what the BRCCC may be recommending by signing onto an initiative about climate change" or a portfolio concerning renewable energy, he said.

Committee members' comments were in response to new state energy adviser Dianne Nielson's report on the initiative, a registry to track greenhouse gases and improved energy efficiency.

Nielson defended the greenhouse gas emission registry, saying it will help track improvements in controlling gases blamed for increasing global warming. If the improvements aren't tracked, she said, when Congress passes national laws regulating it, companies that made improvements before the new regulations wouldn't be able to claim credits.

She noted that the Western Climate Initiative includes Western states and Canadian provinces. Its intention is to ensure "we wouldn't end up in a one-size-fits-all federal program," Nielson said.

Barrus said Huntsman isn't helping Utah. "By the governor moving forward as he has been doing, particularly in the area of climate change and renewable energy, it really seems to put into the back seat" some of the other resources, he said.

He added that he's concerned about these policies hindering development of Utah's oil shale deposits. "We have one of the largest resources of oil shale right in our own back yard," he said.

Nielson said the governor wants the blue-ribbon committee to take a look at the climate issue and provide recommendations on a renewable energy portfolio.

"We have exceptional opportunities in the state in terms of wind power," as well as solar and geothermal energy, she said.

Comments