EPA takes up Calif. plan to limit greenhouse gases

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday agreed to consider a California request to limit greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, a plan that has been on hold for more than a year.

EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson said the decision to take up California's request was a consequence of the April 2 Supreme Court ruling that found the agency has the power to treat climate-warming gases as pollutants and regulate them accordingly.

Speaking at a Senate hearing on the impact of that ruling, Johnson declined to set out a timetable for action on the California petition. He said the process begins with a period of public notice and comment that includes a May 22 hearing in Washington.

California has passed a state law that would require new vehicles to meet gradually tightening standards for greenhouse gas emissions starting with 2009 models. But to put that law into effect, California needs a waiver from the federal government, which is what the EPA is now considering.

The Supreme Court's ruling directed the EPA to reconsider its refusal to regulate carbon dioxide and other emissions from new cars and trucks that contribute to climate change.

The court said such greenhouse gases from motor vehicles fall within the law's definition of an air pollutant.