Quebec Joins WCI, Governors Sign Declaration

Premier Jean Charest said that the Canadian province of Quebec has joined the Western Climate Initiative (WCI). The announcement was made last week at Yale University where a conference brought together the governors of Connecticut, California, Kansas and New Jersey, along with two Canadian premiers, to review state programs and develop a strategy to combat global climate change.

Also, as a result of the conference, 18 states have signed a declaration to address climate change and reach out to the new U.S. president on climate change strategies during his or her first days in office.

The WCI, which formed early last year, set a group-wide target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 15% below 2005 levels by 2020.

Quebec already has a stated goal of reducing emissions between 1.5% and 6% below 1990 levels by 2012.

Charest said his province chose to join WCI, because it was a better fit for its reliance on hydro power. Quebec was also considering joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a group of 10 states in the U.S. Northeast aiming to reduce emissions from fossil fuel power plants.

The WCI, which is led by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, is expected to release details this summer for a regional cap-and-trade market aimed at reducing emissions.

According to a report in Reuters, Quebec’s Montreal Exchange wants to host the WCI’s carbon trading market and has plans to launch a futures market for Canadian carbon dioxide emissions on May 30, subject to regulatory approval.

In addition to California, WCI members include Arizona, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington, and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Manitoba.

Ontario and Saskatchewan have observer status in the WCI, as do Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada and Wyoming, and several Mexican states.

The states signing the conference declaration are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Virginia and Washington.