High costs cited against NM's emissions rules

A top official with the New Mexico Environment Department on Tuesday pointed to concerns about higher utility costs as one reason the agency is no longer supporting state regulations aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions. Deputy Secretary Butch Tongate was the first witness to take the stand at the start of the latest round of hearings before the Environmental Improvement Board. At issue is whether New Mexico should uphold rules adopted last year in the waning weeks of Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson's tenure to regulate heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions. New Mexico's largest electric utilities, the oil and natural gas industry and the city of Farmington have petitioned the board to repeal the state's cap-and-trade rule as well as regulations that spell out reporting requirements for large polluters. Tongate testified that global warming can't be solved by a single state. He said it should be addressed on a national and international level to avoid putting New Mexico at an economic disadvantage. "The cap-and-trade program does not come free. It requires significant investment from industry as well as the state and it will have an impact on every citizen of the state," he said...more