By BRAD CAIN
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Seven Western states are joining four Canadian provinces
to propose a plan to limit greenhouse gas emissions through use of a "cap and
trade" system.
The draft plan, made public Wednesday by Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski's office,
is aimed at gradually reducing carbon emissions across Oregon, Arizona,
California, Montana, New Mexico, Utah and Washington.
The plan, which also would extend to British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and
Quebec in Canada, is keyed to a cap and trade system on utilities and industries
that are major sources of greenhouse gases.
Such a system would reduce pollution by requiring those sectors to meet tough
emissions standards. Under a cap and trade program, businesses that cannot cut
their emissions because of cost or technical hurdles would be allowed to buy
emission credits from companies that have achieved cleaner emissions.
The plan was drafted by the Western Climate Initiative, a group created by
Kulongoski with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Washington Gov. Chris
Gregoire in February 2007.
In Oregon, it will affect about 10 utilities and about 50 companies that put
more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year, officials said.
Officials in Kulongoski's office described the plan as a work in progress and
will be subject to further revision at a meeting of the group next week in San
Diego. A final proposal is expected to be forwarded to leaders of the seven
states and four provinces in September.
Kulongoski's global warming adviser, David VantHof, said while Congress is
considering similar cap-and-trade legislation, the Western states and Canadian
provinces aren't willing to wait for the federal government to move to regulate
greenhouse gases.
"There is no certainty that that is going to be achieved" in Congress, he
said.
VantHof also said that it will take a major lobbying effort by Kulongoski and
others to win approval of the plan from the 2009 Oregon Legislature, since the
costs of the system to curb global warming may slightly push up power rates and
fuel prices.
But he also said people should end up paying less because the system will
also promote conservation and efficiency that will lower their fuel bills
overall while curbing greenhouse gases that many scientists say are altering the
earth's climate.
One environmental advocate, Jeremiah Baumann, called the draft proposal "an
impressive and important step," to approach global warming on a regional basis,
but said the plan is in need of some revision.
While the draft plan begins the cap and trade system for utilities and
industries by 2012, the plan doesn't cover transportation and heating fuels
until 2015 even though both are major sources of greenhouse gases, Baumann
said.
"There are a few significant problems that, if not fixed, mean the program
could miss out on the potential for global warming solutions," he said.
