With US midterm results pointing to continued federal stalemate on climate change, climate action in North America is firmly in the Western Climate Initiative’s (WCI) playing field. And a subset of WCI partners is poised for a 2012 kick-off.
California released its proposed greenhouse gas (GHG) cap-and-trade regulations in Oct. for public comment. Voters in the state strongly endorsed climate action in the midterms, voting down a proposition which would have effectively revoked the state’s climate bill (see Delphi’s previous coverage).
British Columbia is also seeking public input on its proposed Emissions Trading and Cap and Trade Offsets Regulations (see Delphi’s previous coverage). BC Premier and climate supporter Gordon Campbell announced his resignation Nov. 3 however BC’s minister of state for climate change has confirmed that Campbell-era climate change-related policies will be upheld.
The New Mexico government approved the state’s GHG reduction regulations Nov. 2nd, permitting state participation in cap-and-trade. Ongoing participation is likely to hinge on the position of the state’s new governor whose campaign strongly opposed regional cap-and-trade.
Ontario and Quebec are also proposing to have their legislative frameworks in place for a January, 2012 program start.
By Cheryl Johnson, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
