Western Climate Initiative is quickly becoming a buzz phrase for emission standards and fighting greenhouse gasses. I like to think of it as the Justice League of air quality.
The WCI is composed of seven states (including Arizona) and four Canadian provinces, all of which have banned together to cut greenhouse emissions by 2020 to 15 percent below 2005 levels.
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Director Steve Owens and Gov. Napolitano spearheaded the effort of joining the WCI and getting the state to cut its emissions sooner rather than later.
I had the opportunity to interview Owens last September about the initiative. He emphasized his belief that regulating emissions now would be a lot cheaper for Arizona than dealing with the fallout of unregulated greenhouse gasses in the future.
Gov. Jan Brewer, it seems, does not share that opinion. It has been going around for a while now that Jan Brewer is not a big fan of the WCI and has been considering scaling back Arizona’s involvement in the effort.
Rep. Andy Biggs introduced a bill last week that aims to remove Arizona from the initiative altogether. Advocates of the initiative criticized the bill, saying it would only lose the state green jobs and increase Arizona’s high asthma rates.
As the battle over emission control continues and the anti-WCI bill weaves its way through the capitol, Arizonans are left holding their breath waiting to hear the future of their state’s air quality.
Megan L. Thomas
Arizona Eco 
