Effort to 'green' U.S. Capitol complicated by coal (CNN)

[eppur_se_muova]

By Jim Spellman and Andrea Koppel
CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plan to make the U.S. Capitol complex more environmentally friendly is being hampered by the reluctance of lawmakers from coal-producing states to implement changes at the complex's coal-burning power plant.

In April, Pelosi, D-California, launched a plan to "green" the Capitol complex, which includes the U.S. Capitol building, the Supreme Court, Library of Congress and 24 other buildings on Capitol Hill.

Her goal is to make the complex 'carbon neutral' within two years by changing its 17,000 lamps from incandescent bulbs to corkscrew fluorescent bulbs and using eco-friendly vendors for furniture and other items.

"Under this greening of the capitol initiative ... we will become carbon neutral," Speaker Pelosi said this week. A carbon-neutral building produces no net contribution to carbon emissions, also known as greenhouse gases, which some scientists consider to be the main contributor to global warming.

But several blocks away from the U.S. Capitol sits the Capitol Power Plant, which burns coal as well as natural gas and some heating oil to heat and cool the complex. Coal accounts for 49 percent of the plant's output, according to a draft report prepared for a House committee.
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more: http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/10/capitol.green/index.html

"Some scientists consider" -- overdoing the faux objective language, aren't we?