Montana Joins Western Climate Initiative, Establishes 20x10 Initiative

On November 19, 2007, Governor Brian Schweitzer announced that Montana will become the seventh U.S. state to join the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a joint effort to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions and address climate change. The Initiative was established in February 2007 by the governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington; Utah and the Canadian Provinces of British Columbia and Manitoba joined the initiative in the spring of 2007. Under the agreement, by 2008 the member states and provinces will establish a cap-and-trade system to aid in meeting their regional greenhouse gas emissions target of 15% below 2005 levels by 2020. The participants will also set up an emissions registry and tracking system.

At the same time, Governor Schweitzer also announced a new initiative seeking a 20% reduction in energy consumption by Montana state agencies by the year 2010. In addition to reducing energy use, Schweitzer also asked agencies to apply a Montana vehicle efficiency standard by shifting state vehicle fleets to achieve an average of 30 miles per gallon or better.

Press Release
Western Climate Initiative
Map of Regional Initiatives