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REGIONAL politicians are effectively bypassing the Bush administration after its blunt refusal to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, the UN agreement setting out obligatory cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. Disaffected with a lack of federal action, a rising tide of state legislators and senators are taking matters into their own hands, pushing new proposals to drive emissions down.

鈥淭he conventional wisdom used to be that the problem is global in nature, so only national governments have the responsibility to act,鈥� says Susan Tierney, former Assistant Secretary for Policy at the US Department of Energy and vice-president of Lexecon, a consultancy specialising in electricity and gas issues. But now, she says, states and cities have recognised they can go it alone.

Bush steadfastly opposes mandatory targets on emissions, viewing any regulation as an economic dampener. But in 2001, soon after reneging on his campaign promise to adopt Kyoto limits, the six New England states decided to adopt their own greenhouse gas limits. Their stance has prompted action throughout the country. 鈥淲e鈥檝e become a magnet of interest for people in other states,鈥� said Tierney at a climate change conference last week called Reporting on Nature鈥檚 Timetable at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. 鈥淭he momentum is definitely rising.鈥�

In a matter of weeks, the Senate should get the chance to vote on a new bill that sets out national cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. Co-sponsored by Republican senator John McCain of Arizona and Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the bill calls for emissions to be scaled back to 2000 levels by 2010 and to 1990 levels by 2016. These fall short of Kyoto targets, which require0 a 5.2 per cent cut in 1990 levels by 2012, but McCain and Lieberman are also calling for an emissions trading system similar to those already in use in Europe and elsewhere. A clutch of Republican senators have already called for measures to cap emissions, suggesting the bill has a good chance of being passed.

At the same time, an even tougher bill, put forward by Vermont鈥檚 Senator James Jeffords and minority leader Thomas Daschle, calls for all new federal projects to be assessed for their potential impact on the climate.

George Pataki, the Republican governor of New York, is also getting in on the act. Two weeks ago, he announced a tough new stance on greenhouse gases and introduced pro-renewable energy measures in the state. First, he said, New York would follow California鈥檚 lead in limiting carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles. The exact limits, which will be imposed from 2009, have yet to be determined. He also committed the state to expanding its share of electricity generated from renewable sources from 17 to 25 per cent within a decade.

The new initiatives add to what has already been agreed between the New England states and New Jersey. The caps, which they reaffirmed earlier this month, initially fall short of Kyoto targets, with a cut in CO₂ emissions to 1990 levels by 2010. But the targets ultimately go further than Kyoto, calling for a 10 per cent cut from 1990 levels by 2020.

Ultimately, a 75 per cent slash in emissions is planned 鈥� the amount some scientists say would be needed globally to stabilise the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere. However, no firm date has been put forward for attaining it.

Regardless, the proposed curbs could make a significant dent in emissions. If they were a nation, the six New England states, along with New York and New Jersey, would rank as the world鈥檚 eighth largest greenhouse gas emitter. Their CO₂ output is roughly the same as that of France, Spain, Italy, Australia, Brazil, South Korea, Canada or Mexico, says Tierney.

Several other states and 140 cities around the country have also enacted their own limits and many others are considering similar moves.

Many of the states that are clamping down on greenhouse gas emissions are driven by a fear that they may otherwise be hit with legislation to meet tougher standards in the future, says Tierney.

Others are capitalising on fledgling renewable energy industries. 鈥淲e look at climate change as something that could be a very positive industry,鈥� says John Shea of the New England Governors鈥� Conference. Businesses in the region can, he says, 鈥渦se our technology to make us a more efficient economy.鈥�