Taking a bite out of global warming

Last year was momentous in the annals of global warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Al Gore shared the Nobel Peace Prize. Shortly after, the world adopted the "Bali road map," setting in motion negotiations to cut greenhouse gas pollution and protect areas most vulnerable to climate risk.

Cities and states are taking major steps on global warming. And despite continued obstruction by the Bush administration, Congress took up the Lieberman-Warner global warming bill. It still needs improvement but is a bipartisan step forward.

And now, another important piece of the puzzle is being put into place. This week, the Western Climate Initiative is meeting in Portland to launch a regional climate system. The WCI has strong backing from the governors of Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, and the premiers of British Columbia and Manitoba.

The WCI has set an overall target of 15 percent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2020 (compared with 2005 levels). Getting an early start is crucial. The regional approach will coordinate state efforts years ahead of a federal system, and help set a standard for the nation.

The major proposal of the WCI is likely to be a carbon market that sets a firm and binding cap on emissions and decreases them year by year. A well designed "cap-and-trade" system will allow power plants and other emitters to reduce their own emissions and also purchase allowances and offsets to meet their annual targets, making it easier to find the best and cheapest methods to reduce emissions.

Close attention to the development of the WCI is important. Rules for allowances and offsets and many other provisions are sure to be complicated. So the Sierra Club has adopted a set of principles to judge the WCI and similar carbon market systems:

The basic principle is "polluter pays." Other approaches would be economically inefficient and shift an unfair burden to energy users and the environment.

Instead of getting emission allowances for free, greenhouse gas emitters should buy them, 100 percent if at all possible. Some Northeast states already have adopted 100 percent allowances.

Funds raised by allowance auctions will be substantial, in the billions of dollars. They should be used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote clean, renewable energy and to provide retraining and a just transition for those whose jobs and communities are affected.

There must be full recognition of environmental integrity and economic justice. The burdens of a carbon market cannot fall on those least responsible or most vulnerable, and the market must result in actual greenhouse gas reductions without other environmental damage.

Offsets can help emitters achieve their targets at a lower cost, but they must be verifiable, permanent and additional to what would occur otherwise. Until there are sound global standards, the Sierra Club does not support offsets from "carbon sinks" such as forest sequestration.

Carbon markets must be transparent, well regulated and subject to revision or even shutdown if things do not work out.

The WCI states and provinces are moving to address this region's greenhouse gas emissions, but we can also help set a standard for the rest of the world. By addressing global warming and by making smarter energy and transportation choices, we can save money, create good jobs, reduce air and water pollution and improve our health.