California today released draft rules for its landmark greenhouse gas cap-and-trade plan that will be the most ambitious US effort to use the market to address global warming unless the federal government passes a climate change law.
State law requires California to cut its carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. Measures will range from clean vehicle and building rules to the cap-and-trade system that lets factories and power companies trade credits to emit gases that heat up the earth.
The draft released today shows California, seen as an environmental trend-setter, may take on even more than expected in its first round of cap-and-trade, which will start in 2012.
Home fuel and transportation could be included in the first cap-and-trade phase, which had been expected to focus on big pollution sources like power plants and refineries.
"California is the first out of the box," state Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols told reporters on a conference call. The draft rules kick off a comment period that will lead to final regulation next autumn.