SEATTLE (AP) – Washington state regulators on Wednesday unveiled an updated plan to limit greenhouse gas emissions from large polluters, the latest attempt by Gov. Jay Inslee to push ahead with a binding cap on carbon emissions after struggling to win approval from legislators.
Washington would join nearly a dozen states including California that have capped carbon pollution from industrial sources.
The proposed rule requires large industrial emitters to gradually reduce carbon emissions over time. The rule would cover many industries, including power plants, oil refineries, fuel distributors, pulp and paper mills and others.
Inslee, who has called climate change “the single most important issue of our time,” has gained national attention on environmental issues but so far has failed in his own state to pass ambitious carbon-reduction proposals, including a plan to charge polluters a fee for emissions. Frustrated by inaction in the Legislature, Inslee last year used his executive authority and directed state regulators to limit carbon pollution under the state’s Clean Air Act.
“Today is an exciting day in our continued quest to provide cleaner air for Washingtonians,” Inslee said in a video statement Wednesday. He said carbon pollution is hurting the state and cited two consecutive record-setting wildfire seasons that burned about 2,000 square miles, among other climate-related problems.