Global Warming Solutions News

Arizona advocates joined global warming and clean energy advocates from across the western United States and Canada to hail Governor Napolitano and other leaders of the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) for taking a crucial step toward regionwide reductions in global-warming pollution. Click here to download the WCI statement.

According to the advocates, the WCI - currently encompassing the states of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and the provinces of British Columbia and Manitoba – fulfilled its pledge to set an overall emissions-reduction target for 2020. The WCI target, 15 percent below 2005 levels by 2020, moves the region toward the pollution reductions the scientific community says are needed to avoid the worst impacts of global warming.

“Achieving global warming reductions will cut our dependence on oil, reduce air pollution and protect pristine places,” said Erik Magnuson, Program Associate for Environment Arizona. “Arizona needs to continue adopting and implementing policies to reduce global warming including the use of more solar and wind power in our state.”

Arizona groups signed onto a statement which stated: “As U.S. and Canadian decision-makers fashion concrete solutions to climate change, they should:

• Develop and support binding legal limits that advance emissions reductions across all sectors of the economy. A variety of mechanisms may be needed because of important differences between the various segments – transportation, electricity, agriculture, etc.
  
  
• Ensure that no new long-term financial commitments to carbon-intensive projects, such as conventional coal-fired power plants or major new road projects, are made in member states and provinces while policies and mechanisms are under development.
  
  
• Adopt policies that prioritize and accelerate the development of energy conservation and energy efficiency.  We must use less energy for electricity, heating and cooling, and transportation.  Then we must not miss any opportunities to develop the West’s abundant clean renewable resources.” 

Last fall, Governor Napolitano issued an executive order setting a goal of reducing Arizona’s greenhouse gases to 2000 levels by 2020 and 50 percent below 2000 levels by 2040. This executive order followed a report from the Governor’s Climate Change Advisory Group (CCAG), a diverse stakeholder group comprised of utility, business, environmental, public health, tribal and other leaders. 

Jeff Schlegel, with the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) and a member of the CCAG, said, “We support this action of the governors and their short-term goal to help reduce global warming. We encourage the governors to take early and aggressive action and implement policies to achieve these goals.”

Diane E. Brown of the Arizona PIRG Education Fund stated that one of the unanimous recommendations from the CCAG to reduce global warming pollution was the adoption of the Clean Cars Program. Governor Napolitano also included the adoption and implementation of this policy in her Executive Order and it is part of the Western Climate Initiative. Brown said, “By establishing the Clean Cars Program, we can reduce our state’s pollution, protect public health and save consumers money at the pump.”  Brown urged the state to move forward and conduct the necessary process to put cleaner cars on the road.

More information on the Western Climate Initiative can be found at www.westernclimateinitiative.org