SNAP ANALYSIS: EPA says CO2 emissions endanger human health

By Ayesha Rascoe - Analysis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday unveiled a finding that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare, opening the door to federal regulation of carbon dioxide as a pollutant.

The finding does not "automatically trigger" new carbon rules but could allow the EPA to move forward with limiting greenhouse gas emissions under the federal Clean Air Act.

Rising levels of greenhouse gases "are the unambiguous result of human emissions, and are very likely the cause of the observed increase in average temperatures and other climatic changes," the EPA proposal said.

Environmentalists applauded the decision, while affected industries expressed concern.

* "With this step, Administrator Lisa Jackson and the Obama administration have gone a long way to restore respect for both science and law," David Doniger of the Natural Resources Defense Council said in a statement.

* Business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have warned that the U.S. economy could grind to a halt if the EPA were to begin regulating carbon.

Bruce Braine, a vice president for policy analysis at American Electric Power, the country's largest burner of coal for electricity generation, said that AEP would rather see greenhouse gases regulated by legislation.

"The Clean Air Act was never really designed with carbon in mind, it was designed for air pollutants in the conventional sense," like acid rain and smog components and mercury and lead that are easier to control on a local basis, he said.