Western governors sign greenhouse gas pact
Published 9:00 pm Monday, February 26, 2007
WASHINGTON – Fed up with federal inaction and convinced of the dangers from global warming, five governors from Western states agreed Monday to work together to reduce greenhouse gases.
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said state and national officials have seen the science of global warming and know they must respond.
“We must implement what we all have put in place, and work together to develop a regional market approach. Together, we can reduce our climate pollution, grow jobs and move toward energy independence,” Gregoire said.
Western states have suffered from prolonged drought, decreased snowfall, increased and earlier snow melt, and more severe and devastating forest and rangeland fires in recent years as a result of changes in the climate, she said.
The twin challenges of global warming and energy were some of the dominant points of discussion over four days at the annual winter meeting of the National Governors Association.
The governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington agreed to develop a regional target to lower greenhouse gases and create a market-based program aimed at helping businesses reach the still-undecided goals.
“Today’s announcement shows how the West continues to lead the way in addressing the most pressing environmental challenge of our time,” said Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski. “Together, we are putting ourselves on a path to reduce greenhouse emissions and create a sustainable energy future – a model and example for the rest of the nation.”
Kulongoski said the five states will set pollution reduction targets within six months and design a market-based program – most likely a cap and trade system, which lets companies that can’t meet their emission reduction targets buy credits from those that reduce carbon dioxide – within 18 months to help reach emissions reduction goals.
“We must encourage all the governors to sign onto these partnerships,” said California GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has pursued some of the most aggressive efforts in the country.
The latest agreement – called the Western Regional Climate Action Initiative – builds on earlier efforts.
Last year, Schwarzenegger signed California legislation imposing a first-in-the-nation emissions cap on utilities, refineries and manufacturing plants, with a goal of cutting greenhouse gases to 1990 levels by 2020.
New Mexico and Arizona last year agreed to measure and report greenhouse gas emissions. A similar joint effort on climate change was agreed upon in 2003 by California, Oregon and Washington.
Carbon dioxide from burning coal, oil and other fossil fuels is the biggest of the greenhouse gases, so called because they create a heat-trapping blanket when released into the atmosphere. Others are methane, nitrous oxide and synthetic gases. Scientists say the atmosphere holds more carbon dioxide now than it has for hundreds of thousands of years.
