President George W. Bush has announced a goal of stopping the growth of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.by 2025 but made no mention of any specifics on reaching that promise. Stating the U.S. was in fact serious about environmental awareness, Bush was quick to reiterate that any new legislation to help the goal shouldn't negatively affect American industry.

Environmentalists were quick to slam the move as a shallow and undeveloped plan - and you can see their point. After dismissing the Kyoto protocol almost seven years ago, Bush's new plan outlines no strategies or methods of achieving the goal. While nations that signed the Kyoto protocol are moving onto new and more effective frameworks as part of a 2012 update, the U.S. will still be 13 years away from achieving any semblance of the same environmental success, reports the Associated Press.

The plan would also allow the U.S. to continue to increase emissions until the 2025 cutoff date while many other countries have already starting reduced their own levels.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has praised the new mandate but others have been critical including presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Both Clinton and Obama have promised to bring environmental issues to the fore, as well as subsidize the U.S. auto-industry in this period of transition. George Bush has previously opposed any government bailout of the Detroit 3 but if the economy is to be rescued while reducing emissions this may be the only solution.