Gore hails Sarkozy's green deal

PARIS, France (AP) -- France will eliminate all energy waste by households and ban incandescent light bulbs and polluting cars, under proposals announced Thursday by President Nicolas Sarkozy, who also met with former Vice President Al Gore.

Gore, who shared this year's Nobel Peace Prize for his work highlighting global warming, thanked Sarkozy and the French participants of a two-day environmental conference for tackling what he called "a planetary emergency."

Sarkozy called his proposals "an ecological New Deal" that emerged from months of talks aimed at pushing France into the vanguard of the fight against global warming.

Sarkozy also urged study of a much-disputed carbon tax that would punish polluters, but stopped short of a full endorsement. The conservative president has sought to cut taxes in France.

Sarkozy said that by 2020, all new buildings should "produce more energy than they consume," although he did not elaborate. By 2010, all incandescent light bulbs and single-paned windows would be banned under the plan.

Lawmakers are expected to vote on the proposals early next year. Parliament, dominated by Sarkozy's party, is likely to pass them, although activists fear lawmakers will try to water them down.

Sarkozy's address capped the national conference at which farmers, activists and unions clashed in heated talks over genetically modified crops and the use of pesticides.

The talks were the climax of three months of nationwide discussions meant to produce 15-20 measures changing the way the French eat, move and live.

Even the government acknowledged that the measures would be modest compared with those in some other countries -- and are aimed largely at helping France catch up with its European neighbors. E-mail to a friend

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