Oh my.

Environmentalists today, still fuming over the United States' great Kyoto snub, undoubtedly took notice as President Bush disclosed plans for a series of international talks aimed at setting goals to reduce greenhouse gasses, starting with the G-8 summit this June.

That's right, reduce greenhouse gasses. Among those expected to participate, besides the G8, are China and India, also big (and growing) spewers of carbon. And technology, as a means to combat global warming, will be a major theme.

``My proposal is this: By the end of next year America and other nations will set a long-term global goal for reducing greenhouse gases,'' Bush said in an address that set out the U.S. agenda during next week's meeting of the Group of Eight industrial nations in Heiligendamm, Germany. The talks would ``establish a new framework'' for when the Kyoto Protocol on emissions expires in 2012.

Of course, industry, politics and the environment are often at odds. So some are claiming that the President is merely countering aggressive proposals coming out of Europe with more talk.

Is that pessimism warranted or is the US witnessing a serious shift in policy? Stay tuned to see how this all shakes out...

More at GreenBiz and Forbes.