Monday, October 5, 2009

President Barack Obama is putting the federal government on a greenhouse-gas diet.

In an executive order signed Monday, the president directed all agencies to set the first-ever targets for reducing climate-altering pollution from government buildings, fleets and federal workers' commutes.

The order also compels agencies to curb petroleum use.

It's an attempt by the administration to set an example as it moves to require automakers and large industrial facilities to reduce greenhouse gases.

In 2007, President George W. Bush signed a similar order that became law earlier this year. It directed agencies to reduce greenhouse gases by improving energy efficiency and using less oil and other fossil fuels, but it did not set emissions targets.