CHAPTER 2 CLEAN AIR ACT KEYNOTE PRESENTATION

• Jurisdiction: United States

Air Quality Challenges Facing the Natural Resources Industry in the Western United States
(Nov 2007)
CHAPTER 2
CLEAN AIR ACT KEYNOTE PRESENTATION
James B. Martin
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Denver, Colorado

STATE OF COLORADO NEWS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

136 State Capitol Building

Denver, Colorado 80203

(303) 866-2471

(303) 866-2003 fax

Bill Ritter, Jr.

Governor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MONDAY, NOV. 5, 2007

CONTACT: Evan Dreyer, 720.350.8370, evan.drever@state.co.us

GOV. RITTER RELEASES CLIMATE ACTION PLAN

Gov. Bill Ritter today released Colorado's first Climate Action Plan, an ambitious call to action that establishes firm goals and clear strategies to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions, and also provides simple suggestions so everyone in Colorado can address global warming.

"Climate change is our generation's greatest environmental challenge," Gov. Ritter said. "It threatens our economy, our Western way of life and our future. It will change every facet of our existence, and unless we address it and adapt to it, the results will be catastrophic for generations to come.

"I strongly believe we can make a difference. In setting and achieving the goals in this Colorado Climate Action Plan, we will continue to expand the New Energy Economy, show leadership as a state, increase our energy security, and call on the federal government to take strong action."

Greenhouse gas emissions from human activity have grown by 35% in Colorado from 1990 to 2005. The largest contributors are electricity consumption (36%) and transportation (23%). The Climate Action Plan, which includes an agricultural carbon sequestration and offset program, establishes two greenhouse-gas reduction goals: 20% below 2005 levels by 2020 and 80% by 2050.

The agricultural program would enlist farmers and ranchers to participate in a regional consortium to sequester carbon and reduce emissions on agricultural lands, and sell the resulting carbon credits over a multi-state region. Other strategies in the Climate Action Plan include:

• Move toward "clean car" standards to ensure automakers reduce emissions in new vehicles.

• Work collaboratively to reduce emissions from investor-owned utilities by 20% by 2020 and create reasonable goals for other utilities.

• Expand voluntary, and over time phase in mandatory, emission reporting requirements for major greenhouse gas producers.

• Adopt energy-efficiency programs to reduce the...