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Our Policy by Issue
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We Want to Hear from You
Tell us what you think about our climate change work. What national or international policies should be implemented to fight climate change?
On a state and regional level, The Nature Conservancy is supporting a growing number of climate change action plans and policies. We support market-based emissions reduction plans across several states and regions, and the inclusion of forest carbon credits in these programs. In addition, the Conservancy is calling for state funding to monitor the impacts of climate change on natural areas, and help these areas adapt to the inevitable effects of a warming planet.
Engaging policy makers on state and regional levels can:
- influence federal legislation by demonstrating that mandatory policies to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions can be successfully designed and implemented.
- help build political consensus from the ground up; and
- lead to significant carbon emission reductions while federal legislation is being enacted.
State and Regional Programs that Make a Difference
The Conservancy has contributed to the development and/or implementation of:
- The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) – An historic agreement signed by seven Northeastern states, RGGI seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants using a market-based cap-and-trade system that will reduce emissions at little to no cost for consumers.
Since the inception of RGGI, the Conservancy has participated in the stakeholder process by providing input on the design and implementation of the proposed program. In particular, we provided expert input on issues related to the inclusion of forest carbon offsets and the details related to the protocols for their use in the program. Drawing on existing relationships and contacts due to our presence in every RGGI state, we have also conducted outreach and advocacy to ensure the continued progress toward the launch of the program. - The California Climate Action Registry – Established by the state of California as a voluntary registry for greenhouse gas emissions, the California Climate Action Registry encourages businesses to increase energy efficiency and reduce their overall emissions. In return, California ensures participants will be appropriately recognized for their efforts should future state, federal, or international emissions standards be imposed.
The Conservancy has provided expert input to advise on the development of the forest offset provisions in the California Climate Action Registry. - The Western Climate Initiative – Established in early 2007 by the governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington, the Western Climate Initiative aim to reduce their overall emissions by 15 percent below 2005 levels before 2020. The participants have committed to developing a regional market-based cap-and-trade program by 2008 to help achieve this goal. Since it was founded, the Western Climate Initiative has added the state of Utah, and the Canadian Provinces of British Columbia and Manitoba as full partners. In addition, the states of Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Kansas and Wyoming, with the provinces of Quebec, Ontario and Saskatchewan (Canada) and the state of Sonora (Mexico) have signed on as observers of the initiative and may choose to participate as it develops.
As the effort to design a program launches, we are participating in a regional stakeholder process providing input on the design of the proposed program. We are also working with an environmental organization steering group to advocate for and help shape the design of the program. Our state based staff have been reaching out to their executive offices to express our support and provide input for this effort moving forward.
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Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Harold E. Malde (Wetlands at Waterboro Barrens Preserve, Maine); Harold E. Malde (Fishhook cactus on Colorado Plateau in Utah).
