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Climate Change Committee Recommendations
Governor’s Climate Committee Recommends Swift, Strong Action
On July 9,2007, the Montana Climate Change Advisory Committee (CCAC) held its final face-to-face meeting in Missoula. The meeting marked the conclusion of an intensive year-long effort, initiated by Governor Brian Schweitzer, to develop policy recommendations for reducing Montana’s contribution to the critical problem of global climate change.
At the July meeting, the 18-member group (on which MEIC served) gave final approval to 57 different policies spanning multiple sectors of the economy (see page 15 for examples). The group also reviewed preliminary numbers for the quantity of carbon dioxide that would be saved by each policy, along with the financial cost (or savings) associated with each measure.
The result? By fully implementing all 57 policies, Montana would reduce its projected emissions by more than ten million metric tons by the year 2020—an amount nearly sufficient to return the state’s emissions to 1990 levels. The cost? After the costs and savings for all of the measures were totaled up, the final result was a savings of two dollars per ton of carbon dioxide emissions eliminated. In other words, the recommended measures would not only drastically reduce Montana’s carbon emissions, they would also save Montanans money—mostly as a result of the tremendous savings that come from adopting energy-efficient technologies and practices.
The final action taken by the CCAC at its July meeting was to develop greenhouse gas reduction targets for the state. The group unanimously agreed that the state should (and could) return to its 1990 emissions level by 2020. Incidentally, the “1990 by 2020” limit was also advanced during the 2007 legislative session in a bill (HB 753) sponsored by Rep. Betsy Hand (D-Missoula). While the bill received support from a broad cross-section of Montanans (including more than 40 people who testified for it), it died in the House Natural Resources Committee. The CCAC’s analysis only bolsters the case that such a target is both achievable and cost-effective.
In addition to “1990 by 2020,” the group endorsed a long-term goal of reducing the state’s emissions an additional 80% by the year 2050. This latter goal was based on the findings of the UN-sponsored Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which has determined that cuts of that magnitude are necessary to stabilize the climate. IPCC scientist Dr. Steven Running, a professor at the University of Montana, served as one of the scientific advisors for the CCAC.
Finally, it was felt that Montana State government should “lead by example” with an accelerated goal of reaching 1990 levels by 2018 (two years ahead of the statewide goal), and to continue its progress by dropping to 5% below 1990 levels by 2020.
The committee’s final work product should be completed sometime in September, when it will be transmitted to DEQ director Richard Opper (who appointmented the CCAC members and actively monitored the process) and to Governor Schweitzer. Ideally, the administration will move forward with the entire package. While some actions can be implemented directly in the executive branch, others will require legislative or congressional action. It is hoped that Opper and Schweitzer will be strong advocates for the CCAC recommendations in these and other venues.
The work of the CCAC can be reviewed at:
www.mtclimatechange.us
Click on “CCAC” to read the current draft of policy options.