USTR Ron Kirk talks about trade and climate change:
I would like to emphasize the Administration's view that global climate change is a priority and
that our response includes asserting U.S. leadership to establish a domestic cap-and-trade system and put us on a trajectory to gradually reduce our carbon emissions. I share the views of Special Envoy Todd Stem, our lead climate negotiator, that by transforming ourselves to a low-carbon economy, we can stimulate global economic growth and put our workers, farmers and manufacturers at the forefront of the global economy. Having said that, I acknowledge some of the concerns of certain U.S. manufacturers, particularly in those sectors that are energy and trade intensive, that increased costs associated with carbon reductions could lead to competitive disadvantages vis a vis producers in countries that do not take action to reduce their carbon emissions. This phenomenon is directly relevant to concerns with "carbon leakage" because any shifting of production to other countries could lead to the unintended effect of only limited or zero net decreases in global carbon emissions associated with that production. Climate change is a global environmental challenge and we want to ensure that the U.S. response is not weakened by the failure of other countries to take action. I understand that Energy Secretary Chu's comments during his hearing reflected such concerns.The Administration believes that the best approach to address concerns with carbon leakage is to
negotiate a new international climate change agreement in the United Nations that ensures that
all the major emitters take long term, significant action to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
VVe look forward to working with these countries to negotiate a meaningful global climate
agreement and actively avoiding circumstances in which we are simply exporting carbon
emissions abroad....
The Administration is seeking to address many of the issues you raised in your letter, particularly
in ensuring that the design and implementation of domestic energy and climate policy are
compatible with our international trade obligations and minimize incentives for our trading
partners to pursue counter measures that could negatively impact U.S. exports. Our
consideration of the necessity of, and options for, addressing carbon leakage will include how
potential measures might be targeted towards the circumstances of energy and trade intensive
industries. The Administration, however, does not support any specific measures, including
border measures, at this time. As we move forward in our engagement with Congress on the
design of domestic climate change policy, we will evaluate the various options to address carbon
leakage under consideration on Capitol Hill.
