Mayor urges Seattleites to help slow climate change

Plant a tree. Ride a bike. Get a new showerhead.

You've heard it all before — simple ways to help save the planet. Be ready to hear it all some more — actually, a lot more.

In unveiling his plan to cut greenhouse-gas emissions in Seattle, Mayor Greg Nickels on Wednesday called on Seattleites to do their part. "When it comes to climate change, we are all part of the problem — and part of the solution," Nickels said.

His plan is a first step toward a goal of the city meeting the international Kyoto Protocol by 2012. He has led a campaign in which 306 other U.S. cities have committed to do the same.

The Seattle plan calls for using more biofuels, making city buildings more energy-efficient and getting local businesses on board.

It also banks on $37 million over the next two years — much of it linked to a property-tax levy on November's ballot — for more bus service, better sidewalks and bike lanes, and more synchronized traffic lights.

In the meantime, the mayor says, pump up your car tires and insulate your home. Every little bit helps.