Ice focus

gas emissions would be instituted and emission credits would be sold to, and then traded among, emitters. Part of the revenue from the sold credits would go to investments in renewable energy, though it's not clear what would happen to the rest. A so-called 'Gang of 15', comprising senators from states that depend on coal-fired power plants for energy, is especially opposed to Obama's system because these senators feel their constituencies would be unfairly targeted. Given the opposition to cap-and-trade legislation, the Democrats are contemplating breaking energy legislation up into several pieces, starting with less contentious bills, such as legislation that would implement a national energy standard, and progressing towards a cap-and-trade bill. Harry Ried, the leader of the Senate majority party, believes that spoon-feeding the energy/climate legislation to Congress will be more effective than serving up an unpalatable, all-encompassing energy bill. On the international front, the White House seems keen to engage the world on the issue of global warming. The President's first international trip was to Canada, where he discussed energy issues with Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Environmental groups have been up in arms over Canadian 'oil sands', a term that refers to bitumen deposits that are mined and processed into crude oil. Unlike conventional oil deposits that often can be simply pumped out of the ground, oil sands must be mined with huge hydraulic shovels and then extracted, the upshot being that, before the oil is even used in a combustion engine, it has already incurred a substantial carbon penalty. And the impact of oil sands on the Canadian wilderness has been a political nightmare with a recent story and photospread in National Geographic that painted a bleak picture of the Alberta mining operation. Given the environmental issues that plague oil sands, coupled with the fact that half of US oil imports from Canada originate from oil sands, it was understandable that Obama's visit north of the border was anxiously awaited by the Canadian government and energy industry. As expected, the president reaffirmed the need for both nations to adopt a carbon cap but, when pressed on Americas's stance on oil sands, Obama skirted the issue saying, " We have to complete our domestic debate and discussion on these issues ". Some onlookers judged the response as shrewd and likely reflective of Obama's recognition that the US has its own obstacles to mount with regard to coal …