WESTERN CLIMATE INITIATIVE

The Grand Canyon Trust is advocating region-wide reductions in global warming pollution through the Western Climate Initiative (WCI). The initiative is a collaboration launched in February 2007 between the Governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington to meet regional challenges raised by climate change. WCI is identifying, evaluating and implementing collective and cooperative ways to reduce greenhouse gases in the region. In April 2007, the Premier of British Columbia joined the Initiative. Other states and provinces are joining as observers.

The Grand Canyon Trust is among more than a dozen clean-energy advocates from across the United States and Canada that are actively engaged in the WCI process. In August 2007, the groups urged WCI to adopt concrete solutions to climate change.

WCI 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 and we must not miss any opportunities to develop the West’s abundant clean renewable resources. 

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