Local Action: The New Paradigm in Climate Change Policy

While traditionally framed as a national and international problem, climate change is also an important local issue. For the past fifteen years, while nations have fought over the terms of emissions reductions and the Kyoto Protocol, local governments and communities have been enacting innovative measures that not only prevent emissions of significant quantities of greenhouse gases but also reduce air pollution, save money, and improve the overall quality of life.

In the absence of a serious national policy that addresses global warming, these grassroots efforts can and have made a difference. Since 1993,when fourteen pioneering local governments first began to develop programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a national and international movement has formed to fight global climate change through concerted local action. These communities are having a significant effect. A handful of jurisdictions in the United States are preventing over twenty million tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere annually and have saved over four hundred million dollars in the process. These initiatives include greening the local building codes, creating commercial waste reduction programs, encouraging water conservation, promoting bicycling and fuel-efficient vehicles, upgrading city buildings, advocating for the use of biodiesel for municipal transportation, and designing innovative systems and policies for reduced paper use. Two in-depth case studies-- Fort Collins, Colorado, and Portland, Oregon--demonstrate how two cities have created and implemented climate-friendly and environmentally sound habitats.

While most books on global warming focus on national and international implications and policy approaches or serve as guides to help individuals live in an ecologically sound manner, Linstroth and Bell provide a blueprint for local governments to follow. Combining an analysis of existing federal policy with examples of successful local policy, they provide practical examples of measures that can be implemented by communities and local governments across the United States.

TOMMY LINSTROTH is the Head of Sustainable Initiatives for Melaver, Inc., a vertically integrated, sustainable real estate firm based in Savannah, Georgia. RYAN BELL is an Environmental Planner with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and was formerly the U. S. Program Manager with the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI)--Local Governments for Sustainability.