Economy Thwarts Regional Cap-and-Trade Plan on Climate

Tom Banse
04/06/2009

A plan to regulate global warming emissions at the regional level has stalled. The twin culprits are the recession and the arrival of new blood in Washington, D.C. Last year, the governors of seven Western states, including Oregon and Washington, agreed to a regional cap–and–trade system. But of the seven state legislatures called to adopt the plan, only one — California's — has gone along.

In a figurative sense, state lawmakers feel the heat emanating from places like this glassmaking factory near Winlock in Southwest Washington.

Smith: "Inside, the temperature is about 2,800 degrees Fahrenheit."

Natural gas fuels the massive furnace. Molten glass glows orange from various portholes. The heat, the scale, the volume of window glass rolling out — they boggle the senses. Not to mention the carbon dioxide going up the chimney. Cardinal Glass plant manager Steve Smith says it's measured in thousands of tons.

Smith: "Currently within the industry, there are no furnaces like this operating on electricity, only natural gas or oil — carbon–based fuels."

Smith grew concerned when he learned seven Western states and some Canadian provinces made a regional pact to cap global warming pollution. Under the scheme, companies would have to pay if they couldn't reduce their carbon emissions after 2012.

Smith: "Doing it regionally, we would have just been less competitive with facilities outside of the regional cap–and–trade program."

So Mr. Smith goes to Olympia, Washington to say 500 jobs at his company are at risk. He's pleasantly surprised that lawmakers listened.

Smith: "I feel the outcome probably would've been different if we were not in a recession. It seems as if there is more concerns about businesses now that we're in tight economic times."

You're right, says State Representative Richard DeBolt. But the Chehalis Republican says there's something else too. The Western Climate Initiative got started because the federal government wasn't doing anything about global warming. Now that's changing.

Rep. DeBolt: "We know the federal government is going to take action soon. Why would we want to jump out in front when we don't know what the structure is going to look like, who is going to be damaged, how it's going to look — when you're going to have a unified system running across the United States."

In Olympia, Salem, Santa Fe, Phoenix, Salt Lake, and Helena, similar arguments are leading to the same outcome.

Utah and Arizona legislators went so far as to urge their governors to pull out of the Western climate group. In the New Mexico and Montana legislatures, the idea never saw the light of day. In Washington state, lawmakers considered and then quickly dropped the cap.

In Oregon, the process of watering down the greenhouse gas rules is underway. It amounts to tough sledding for lobbyist Jessica Finn–Coven of the non–profit group, Climate Solutions. She argues Western states could benefit by getting an early start on whatever pollution reduction targets Congress eventually sets.

Finn–Coven: "We can drag our heels and not start until 2012 and then have to reduce much quicker. Or we can start early and do it more gradually. I think most industries would prefer to do it a little at a time. That will just make it easy for them."

For now, California is the lone state within the regional climate pact to move forward with an emissions cap and permit trading system. Elsewhere, support hasn't completely evaporated. In Olympia, the co–chair of the Western Climate Initiative says the regional plan will be kept around in case the politics change.

Adair: "If it gets bogged down at the federal level, then we may need to kick it back up at the regional level which is why we don't want to lose the regional peculiarities to the design."

Janice Adair says the grouping of Western states has always maintained a national program is the preferable way to regulate greenhouse gases. Now the preferable way is starting to look like the only way. I'm Tom Banse in Olympia.

© Copyright 2009, KUOW