Question of the Month
December
2006
What actions have
Midwestern states taken to address climate change and/or reduce
greenhouse-gas emissions?
According to a report published this
year by the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, states have taken
many different kinds of action on the issue. In the absence of a
federal policy, states and regions have begun to act.
"States often function as ‘policy
laboratories,’ developing initiatives that serve as models for
federal action," the report states.
States in the Northeast have been
particularly active in the movement to reduce greenhouse gases. Eight
states in that region belong to the Regional Greenhouse Gas
Initiative, a "cap-and-trade" system that provides
incentives for regional power plants to reduce carbon dioxide
emissions.
The Western Governors Association has
created the Clean and Diversified Energy Initiative, a coalition of 18
Western states, to work on strategies for energy efficiency and
renewable energy sources.
Powering the Plains, launched in 2002,
brings together leaders from Iowa, Minnesota, North
Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and the Canadian
province of Manitoba to explore alternative energy sources and
climate-friendly agricultural development.
Illinois,
Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin are among the 22 U.S. states that have
decided to eventually require that a certain amount of electricity be
generated through renewable sources; requirements and implementation
dates vary by state. Minnesota and Iowa are the only two Midwestern
states that require electricity generators to offer "green
pricing," which allows customers to pay a premium on their
electric bills in order to have a portion of their energy provided
from renewable sources.
Half of all states have "public
benefit funds," which collect either small charges on customer
electric bills or contributions from utilities in order to support
efficiency and renewable-energy projects. Michigan, Ohio,
Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin are the Midwestern states that make
those funds available.
A copy of the report ("Learning
from State Action on Climate Change") is available at www.pewclimate.org/policy_center/state_policy.
For
more information on this or any other public policy issue, please call
630/925-1922 or complete the online
form for research services.
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