On November 19, 2007, Governor Brian Schweitzer announced that Montana will become the seventh U.S. state to join the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a joint effort to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions and address climate change. The Initiative was established in February 2007 by the governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington; Utah and the Canadian Provinces of British Columbia and Manitoba joined the initiative in the spring of 2007. Under the agreement, by 2008 the member states and provinces will establish a cap-and-trade system to aid in meeting their regional greenhouse gas emissions target of 15% below 2005 levels by 2020. The participants will also set up an emissions registry and tracking system.

At the same time, Governor Schweitzer also announced a new initiative seeking a 20% reduction in energy consumption by Montana state agencies by the year 2010. In addition to reducing energy use, Schweitzer also asked agencies to apply a Montana vehicle efficiency standard by shifting state vehicle fleets to achieve an average of 30 miles per gallon or better.

Press Release [1]
Western Climate Initiative [2]
Map of Regional Initiatives [3]