The US House of Representatives on Friday narrowly passed a bill aimed at capping and reducing US greenhouse gas emissions and lowering the country's dependence on foreign oil, in what experts say a critical step toward tackling climate change.

The bill, the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES Act), was passed by a vote of 219-212 after hours of bitter debate.

Significant meaning

As the biggest economy in the world with the highest per capita carbon dioxide emissions, what the US does in its response to climate change will have a direct bearing on the international community's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, analysts said.

They added that any substantive progress at the Copenhage climate change talks scheduled for December this year will hinge to a large extent on whether Washington agrees to set mandatory emissions targets.

Under the administration of former US President George W. Bush, the US climate policy aroused deep disappointment and great dismay in the international community. The Bush administration also withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol, making the US a target of criticism at almost all climate negotiations.

After taking office in January this year, the new US government took a stance in stark contrast to that of the previous administrations. The passage of the bill is considered to be a personal triumph for President Barack Obama, as he has made great efforts to push the House of Representatives to pass the historic bill.

Praising the House for passing the legislation, Obama said: "It's a bold and necessary step that holds the promise of creating new industries and millions of new jobs, decreasing our dangerous dependence on foreign oil."

He said such a bill will finally spark a clean energy transformation and help the US lead the global economy in the 21st century.

It is "the most important energy and environmental legislation in the history of our country," said Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts, "It sets a new course for our country, one that steers us away from foreign oil and towards a path of clean American energy."

Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former US Vice President Al Gore posted a statement on his Website saying the measure represents "an essential first step towards solving the climate crisis." Gore won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to draw attention to the destructive potential result of global warming.

Eileen Claussen, president of US think tank Pew Center on Global Climate Change, said the bill has "international implications."

"Enactment of a comprehensive energy and climate bill along the lines of the ACES Act will finally allow the United States to help lead the efforts toward a global agreement in which the major economies of the world, both developed and developing, play their part to address climate change, " Claussen said in a statement.