 |
|
VICTORIA – The
Western Climate Initiative (WCI) met another key milestone with the release of
its 2009 Workplan for the detailed design of a regional cap-and-trade program,
which supports B.C.’s aggressive goal of slashing greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions and stimulating new green technologies, Environment Minister Barry
Penner announced today.
The WCI is working to establish a regional cap-and-trade regime to take effective action on climate change. Designed as the most comprehensive emissions reduction program in the world, the WCI system will cover nearly 90 per cent of the region’s emissions, including those from electricity and industries such as cement plants, natural gas production and mining.
As a way of combating climate
change, cap and trade is gaining profile, especially in light of recent
commitments by President Barack Obama in the United States and the Government
of Canada. As co-chair of the WCI, British Columbia has taken an early
leadership role in designing a cap and trade system, something Penner says will
benefit B.C. in the future.
The latest documents are available online and open for stakeholder input. Over and above WCI’s stakeholder efforts, B.C. continues to work with 13 working groups for input on issues such as competitiveness, labour transition and environmental concerns, and continues to incorporate this feedback into the WCI negotiating process and B.C.’s own regulatory development.
The recommended start date for the WCI cap and trade program is Jan. 1, 2012. First launched in 2007, the Western Climate Initiative is a collaboration of seven U.S. governors and four Canadian premiers created to identify, evaluate, and implement collective and cooperative ways to reduce greenhouse gases in the region, focusing on a market-based cap-and-trade system. For more information, visit: www.westernclimateinitiative.org/
-30-
|
contact: |
Manager, Media Relations 250 953-4577 |
|
|
|
||
|
For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province’s news feeds using RSS, visit the Province’s website at www.gov.bc.ca. |
||
