 Local Action on Global Warming
Soon after taking office, President Bush reversed his campaign pledge to set binding limits on power plant emissions of carbon dioxide, the principal heat-trapping gas contributing to global warming. He also pulled the United States out of international negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol. While an overwhelming majority of Americans supports federal and corporate efforts to reduce air pollution and heat-trapping emissions, the Bush administration promotes continued reliance on carbon-intensive fossil fuels.
While the White House and Congress avoid the subject of climate change, a growing number of governors, mayors, and state legislators are taking action.
State and Regional Efforts
Thirteen states have adopted renewable electricity standards that require utilities to generate an increasing portion of their electricity from clean energy sources such as wind and solar. Collectively, these standards will double the nation's current renewable energy capacity excluding hydropower), eliminating as much carbon dioxide as taking 5.4 million cars off the road or planting more than 1.6 billion trees.
 In 2001, New England governors and the premiers of five eastern Canadian provinces agreed to cap heat-trapping emissions at 1990 levels by 2010, and 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020. New York Governor George Pataki has also launched discussions among 10 Northeast states aimed at establishing binding caps on power plant emissions that could eventually expand to include other sectors, such as transportation and land use, and would help meet the goals set by the New England/Canadian program.
Washington, Oregon, and California are working to curb heat-trapping emissions through initiatives such as stricter appliance efficiency standards and fuel-efficient vehicles for state fleets. As Washington Governor Gary Locke explained, "The governors of the West Coast states have concluded that in the absence of meaningful federal action, we must act individually and regionally to address the sources of global warming."
In addition, California (which has long led the nation in fighting pollution from cars and trucks) recently passed legislation requiring automakers to significantly reduce tailpipe emissions from new cars and light trucks starting in model year 2009.
At the Local Level
Last fall, during Senate debate on the Climate Stewardship Act, 155 mayors sent a statement to Congress expressing concern about global warming's impact on their communities. Saying that their constituents were "calling on us as elected leaders to address global warming," they demanded new federal policies and programs that would help reduce heat-trapping emissions.
Nearly 50 U.S. municipalities including Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York have also joined the international Cities for Climate Protection campaign. Participants set emission reduction targets and develop action plans to meet them, incorporating such varied strategies as judicious land-use and development policies, public transit and ride sharing, energy-efficient building codes, and waste reduction and recycling programs. Along with lower heat-trapping emissions, these communities will reap other benefits: reduced traffic congestion and smog, lower municipal utility and fuel bills, and new jobs created by increased investment in energy-efficient products and services.
Regional, state, and local actions like these are making a real contribution to reductions in our country's heat-trapping emissions, but they are no substitute for federal leadership. The United States is responsible for nearly one-fourth of global heat-trapping emissions, and our total heat-trapping emissions have increased 16 percent since 1990. Unless the federal government takes action today, emissions will increase nearly 40 percent more during the next 20 years, further increasing the impact of global climate change on our environment and public health.
Alden Meyer is director of strategy and policy.
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