Kyoto Ratification Boon to Some

Regional climate group notes many corporations, campuses and communities have been reducing GHGs for years

October 22, 2004 | New Canaan, CT — Ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, the international accord limiting emissions of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, will be a positive thing to the many businesses, cities and towns, and institutions that have already reduced their energy use, according to Clean Air - Cool Planet, a regional climate-action group based here.

“Energy efficiency has been its own reward for many of our partners,” said CA-CP Executive Director Adam Markham, “because of its positive effect on the bottom line for corporations, communities, and higher education.

“But now their work puts them ahead of the game in what will rapidly become an active market,” Markham said, noting that, when the treaty becomes binding in 90 days, “we will likely see leaders emerge based on knowing how to make reducing carbon output a profitable thing.”

Since its creation almost five years ago, CA-CP has worked with more than 40 companies, dozens of campuses, and nearly 50 cities, towns, and counties in eight states, from New Jersey through Maine.

“Our message has been a simple one: global warming is real, and doing something about it is an urgent matter – and something everyone can do,” Markham said. CA-CP provides partners with the tools they need to identify emissions, come up with practical, profitable ways to reduce emissions, and a plan of action.

From mid-sized companies like Oakhurst Dairy and small colleges like Colby and Bowdoin in Maine to an industry giant like Verizon that spans the region, or a state university like UNH or UVM “we’ve seen time and again that investing in technology, process change, and renewable energy cuts carbon and other pollution and saves money, making the company and the country more energy-secure and reducing the threat of global warming.”

In cities like New Haven, Cambridge, Burlington, Vermont, and Keene, New Hampshire, “citizens and officials have been able to take action from planning policy to changing traffic lights, with a dual purpose: use tax-payer dollars more wisely, and reduce pollution.

“These will be the people to run to now as we work to make our way of life less carbon intensive so we can join the other nations of the world in successfully meeting the goals of Kyoto, and going beyond that to reduce the threat of global warming for our children and grandchildren,” Markham said.

About Clean Air-Cool Planet
Clean Air - Cool Planet works with colleges and universities, corporations, and cities and towns from Maine to New Jersey to help them find ways to reduce greenhouse gases and inspire others to do the same. Founded in 2000, CA-CP has offices in Portsmouth, NH and New Canaan, CT.

Contact: Clean Air-Cool Planet
Bill Burtis, Communications Manager, (603) 422-6464 ext. 105
bburtis@cleanair-coolplanet.org