May 2, 2007—Washington’s Landmark State Climate Change Bill Becomes Law Tomorrow
Gov. Gregoire to sign SB 6001 during 1:30 p.m. ceremony at Vancouver’s Water Resources Center
VANCOUVER, Wash.—May 2, 2007—Gov. Chris Gregoire will sign Washington’s historic climate change bill in Vancouver Thursday, May 3, 2007, setting the stage for actions aimed at drastically reducing the state’s global warming emissions over the next four decades.
Apparently, Oregon will be slower to act than Washington. The signing comes only two days after the Oregon Legislature’s House Committee on Energy and the Environment considered three similar global warming bills, rejecting two. Only one, House Bill 3543, is headed to the Oregon House floor for a vote of the full House. It would establish greenhouse gas reduction goals, create a state Global Warming Commission and a Climate Research Center. The other two bills will not be considered again until the 2008 Oregon Legislative session at the earliest.
Washington Senate Bill 6001 puts into law Gov. Gregoire’s initial timeline for reducing global warming pollution from transportation, industry and power production. SB 6001 severely restricts the carbon emissions from power plants built or used to meet Washington customers’ needs: reducing climate pollution to 1990 levels by 2020, to 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2035, and to half of 1990 levels by 2020. The order and law also call for tripling the amount of clean-energy jobs in the state to 25,000 by 2020.
Who: Gov. Chris Gregoire, Vancouver Sen. Craig Pridemore, representatives of NW Energy Coalition, Sierra Club, National Wildlife Federation, and more
What: Official signing into law of Washington SB 6001, codifying an emissions performance standard and climate pollution reduction goals for the state
When: Thursday, May 3,
2007, 1:30 p.m.
Where: Water Resources Education Center, 4600 SE Columbia Way, Vancouver, WA 98661
About the Oregon Environmental Council
Founded in 1968, the Oregon Environmental Council (OEC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with members throughout the state. We bring Oregonians together for a healthy environment. Through programs such as the Bottle Bill, curbside recycling and the creation of local watershed councils, OEC has played a leadership role in helping Oregonians be part of the solution to environmental problems. Our current programs focus on protecting kids’ health from toxic pollution, cleaning up Oregon’s rivers, slowing global warming, and building a sustainable economy.
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