The Golden State Gets Greener

By Eli Kintisch
ScienceNOW Daily News
26 June 2008

California environmental officials have unveiled a sweeping plan designed to cut the state's current greenhouse gas emissions 30% by 2020. The proposal, released online today by the California Air Resources Board, which oversees the state's pollution, includes a comprehensive cap and trade system for industrial emissions, new vehicle efficiency measures, and tighter energy efficiency standards for appliances and buildings. The measure would be the strictest in the nation.

The plan stems from a groundbreaking state law passed in 2006 that sketched out the proposal in broad terms. The board spent the next 2 years gathering public input and consulting with scientists, economists, and policy experts from around the world.

The signature proposal is the greenhouse gas cap. It would target 85% of California's carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from power plants, oil refineries, and factories. If a company can't reach its emissions restrictions, it will be able to buy emission certificates from another company that has made extra cuts. The reductions are roughly three times more aggressive than the eight-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative adopted in the U.S. northeast, which goes into force next year.

The California plan also targets individuals. It aims to reduce driving by funding a new high-speed train spanning the northern and southern areas of the state. It would also offer construction incentives to motivate homeowners to install more solar panels on their roofs.

In addition, the state would expand tree-planting programs and methane capture from its landfills instead of allowing the potent greenhouse gas to escape into the atmosphere.

If the rules are enacted, say officials, the state's greenhouse pollution in 2020 will equal its 1990 emissions. Over time, officials say that the plans could create jobs and tax revenue by growing new green industries like solar power, energy-efficient appliance manufacture, or alternative fuel development. California also wants to contribute to global efforts to avert potential catastrophes such as sea level rise.

"We applaud the state for proposing the most comprehensive plan to date that any state has produced," says Patricia Monahan, who works in California for the Union of Concerned Scientists, an advocacy group. California will be a model for other states and the federal government, she says.

The proposed rules come after two years of debate, public meetings, and consultations with scientists, economists, and policy experts from around the world. After accepting comments on the plan, the California Air Resources Board will vote on it 1 January 2009. If they approve it, regulations could be in place as early as January 2010. For his part, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said at a Florida climate conference today that he wants his state's citizens to prepare for the long haul. "America did not get into this mess overnight, and we are not going to get out of this mess overnight. ... We need to change our energy policies and our thinking, and stick with it."