California Goes Green

The Golden State has issued its final draft of a comprehensive plan to reduce Californias greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels, according to the Los Angeles Times. New regulations will shrink the per capita carbon footprint of Californians by an average of four tons per year over the next 12 years; curb electricity use through energy-efficient buildings and appliances; and discourage urban sprawl to cut traffic. The plan will force auto manufacturers to make cleaner cars, require utilities to build more solar and wind plants, and compel industries to hike energy efficiency to unprecedented levels. "Despite a difficult economy, it is important that we move forward," Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said, adding that the plan would result in "tens of thousands more jobs and a boost to California's gross domestic production." California's climate blueprint will slash the state's emissions about 15% below today's level at a time when a consensus of scientists say that global warming is shrinking the state's water supplies, intensifying wildfires, and stressing plant and animal populations. California's plan was immediately attacked by a coalition of businesses, led by the California Manufacturers and Technology Association and the California Chamber of Commerce, which said the rules would result in "billions of dollars of increased energy costs." Environmentalists praised the blueprint as "an economic stimulus plan" that could spur a "clean tech" economy similar to Silicon Valley's technological boom.

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