Arnold Schwarzenegger recently said that he is in the process of quitting meat during a youtube video promoting 5todo.org. Meat and Dairy production is one of the major causes of climate change according to IPCC.
This news is not a surprise to Californians because Arnold did just that during his tenure as governor of California. He passed the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 also known as AB32. The ultimate goal of AB32 was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the year 2000 levels by the year 2010. This was the first bill of its kind in the world. No other-other leader had the balls to attempt such a risky move before. The bill further set goals to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of California to 1990 levels by the year 2020. When he first passed the executive order to start the process of drafting the bill in 2005, people thought it will take years to pass the bill. What every other political pundit thought impossible was done by the “Governator” in less than a year.
Fast forward 10 years later, was AB32 successful? Did AB32 achieve its goals? How did it impact the economy? Can the rest of the world follow California’s footsteps?
The numbers speak for themselves. California grew economically despite having very strict regulations about climate change.
Adrienne Alvord is the Union of Concerned Scientists’ California and western states director.
She wrote.
“These numbers show that not only is California on track to meet its emissions reduction goals, but that it is doing so when its overall economy is growing at a healthy pace especially since the figures include the period of 2008-2011 when California, like the US and much of the world, experienced a severe economic contraction due to the mortgage debt crisis. Job growth is keeping pace with population growth at the same time that California is reducing electricity consumption while dramatically lowering oil consumption.
AB 32, 10 years later, also demonstrates to Californians that we can prosper and grow while we go further to accomplish real and urgently needed reductions in the pollution causing global warming.”
California showed the nation that we can protect environment and economy at the same time. We can move away from the fossil fuels.
Let’s go and save the environment. Share this and spread the truth.
Sources:
United States Census Bureau. State Characteristics: Vintage 2015; United States Census Bureau. Vintage 2006: National Tables
Energy Information Administration. 2015. State energy data systems (SEDS): 1960-2014. Table CT2: Primary energy consumption estimates, 1960-2014, CA
California Air Resources Board. California Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventory.
U.S. Energy Information Administration. Electric Utility Sales and Revenue–EIA-826 detailed data file.** GWh = gigawatt hours
