US Senate delays climate action, plans smaller Gulf oil bill

Jul 22, 2010, 20:02 GMT

Washington - The US Senate has postponed action on overhauling climate and energy policy, the chamber's top Democrat said Thursday.

Instead, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said lawmakers would consider a less ambitious bill that seeks to learn lessons from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and push a smaller number of incentives for alternative energy.

Reid said the decision was 'terribly disappointing,' but the Democratic Party had to be realistic that 'we don't have the votes' to pass a comprehensive solution to the climate change.

The BP and energy legislation marked 'a step forward, a small step, but very, very important.' The more limited bill could be considered by the Senate as early as next week.

President Barack Obama has made legislation that would limit greenhouse gases blamed for global warming a top domestic priority, and has faced intense pressure from global governments to tackle US pollution levels.

But caps on climate-damaging emissions have been opposed by opposition Republicans for harming the economy. Some Democrats from coal-producing states have also been wary of the effort.

Democrats and the White House insisted their efforts to pass a climate bill remained alive, but would not offer a new timeline for its passage.