States continue to set bar for action on global warming

In October, Environment New Mexico released “Feeling the Heat,” a report that identified 2007 as one of the warmest years on record. The report demonstrates once again that we’re in a race against time to reduce the carbon pollution that causes global warming. In recent months, Environment America, our national federation, has helped make progress putting policy solutions in place at the state and regional levels—progress that provides building blocks for long overdue action on global warming at the federal level.

Environment New Mexico believes that an effective national program will require three elements. First, a national global warming plan will require a cap on carbon emissions that’s strong enough to prevent the catastrophic effects of global warming. The program must also accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy. Lastly, companies must pay to pollute, providing an incentive to reduce emissions and to fund new technology to cut global warming pollution.

Western, Northeast states’ plans

On Sept. 25, 10 Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states announced the nation’s first auction of pollution permits under a global warming emissions cap. The historic move was a culminating step of the Environment America-backed Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a program that caps global warming emissions from power plants.

Environment America, our national federation, fought to make RGGI the first program to sell all pollution permits rather than give them to polluters for free. The states could use the revenue to promote energy conservation and renewable energy.

On Sept. 23, seven Western states announced the details for implementing the Western Climate Initiative, which builds on the regional approach taken by RGGI, but extends it to economy-wide emissions. The plan will reduce global warming pollution at least 15 percent below 2005 levels by 2020.

Environment New Mexico worked to strengthen the states’ plan. In September, we released “Fair Deal For Consumers,” a report to make the case that the auction of pollution permits could pay for a clean energy transition. We also helped win statewide caps on global warming pollution this year in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Washington state. In late August, our sister organization Environment Maryland helped convince Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley to issue a bold plan for addressing global warming.

Effecting a national approach

Science-based emission caps, applied to the entire economy (power plants, transportation, manufacturing and everything else that emits carbon dioxide), with the right incentives and penalties should serve as the model for national action. In early October, we helped organize 152 members of Congress to send a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, laying out strong principles for action on global warming.

“This letter, and the support we can count on in the new Congress, sets the stage for action on global warming,” said Federal Global Warming Program Director Emily Figdor.