美国通过气候法以控制污染

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The U.S. House of Representatives has narrowly passed historic legislation to cut pollution linked to global warming. It’s the first time either house of Congress has approved a bill aimed at curbing emissions. It could lead to sweeping changes across the US economy.

After months of negotiations and last-minute bargaining, the bill was passed by just seven votes.

"On this vote, yeas are 219; nays are 212. The bill is passed."

Republicans were overwhelmingly against it, arguing that it will destroy jobs and burden consumers with higher energy costs.

"And the fight we have between the two sides of the aisle really boils down to one word. It boils down to freedom, the freedom to allow the American people to live their lives without all of these extra taxes and all of this bureaucracy."

President Obama welcomed its passage as a historic act.

"It’s a bold and necessary step that holds the promise of creating new industries and millions of new jobs, decreasing our dangerous dependence on foreign oil."

The legislation seeks to cut emissions from 2005 levels by 17% by 2020 and by 83% by 2050. It will also introduce a cap and trade system to limit pollution from large industrial sources. Pollution permits will then be allocated and sold.

The bill would also force a shift to renewable energy, but it’s still likely to face another tough fight in the Senate.

China welcomed the bill as a major step forward, but it warned that even more assertive action is needed from the US in order to reach an agreement at global warming talks in Copenhagen in December.

Here the Australian Conservation Foundation says the US has sent a strong, positive signal to the world ahead of the talks.

"It’s a broader and stronger bill than we’ve seen in Australia. Everyone would like it to be stronger still and there is still room for the Senate in the US to make improvements along the way."

Mr. Freeman says it's vital for Australia to move forward with a strong package of climate change laws in order to show leadership before heading to negotiations in Copenhagen.

Cassandra Hill, World News Australia.

Glossary [only for reference]
historic [usually before noun]: a historic event or act is very important and will be recorded as part of history
curb [transitive]: to control or limit something in order to prevent it from having a harmful effect
last-minute [only before noun]: happening or done as late as possible before something else happens
bargaining [uncountable]: discussion in order to reach an agreement about a sale, contract etc [= negotiation
burden somebody with something: to make somebody have a lot of problems because of a particular thing

boil down to something [informal]: if a long statement, argument etc boils down to a single statement, that statement is the main point or cause
bureaucracy [uncountable]: a complicated official system which is annoying or confusing because it has a lot of rules, processes etc

seek to do something: to try to achieve or get something
cap and trade: an environmental policy tool that delivers results with a mandatory cap on emissions while providing sources flexibility in how they comply.
pollution (or emission) permits: a free-market solution to the problems caused by negative externalities. This would mean that companies have to pay a certain amount for the pollution they produce.
renewable energy: energy generated from natural resources—such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat—which are renewable (naturally replenished).
assertive: behaving in a confident way, so that people notice you
The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF): an Australian non-profit, community-based environmental organisation focused on advocacy, policy research and community outreach.
signal [countable]: a sound or action that you make in order to give information to someone or tell them to do somethin
improvement [countable]: a change or addition that improves somethin
along the way: during a process or experience, or during someone's life