A commitment to climate solutions

With $4-a-gallon gas, wars in the Middle East, and accelerating climate change, it's no wonder we're seeing bipartisan support for ending our addiction to oil.

Fossil-fuel dependence is already costing too much — draining more than $50 million per day from Washington's economy as it disrupts our climate, causing more intense floods and forest fires.

Expanding oil drilling isn't an answer. That's like treating an addiction by increasing the drug supply. Instead, Washington can become a leader in the transition to a prosperous, sustainable future through the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a coalition of seven states and four Canadian provinces working to reduce their global-warming pollution and build their clean-energy economies.

The WCI has agreed that a carbon cap — a real, verifiable commitment to reduce global-warming pollution — is the foundation of an economically sound climate policy. It's the signal the private sector needs in order to invest heavily in solutions. And it's a sure way to plug the gaping leak in our economic bucket — the billions we spend on fossil-fuel imports — and reinvest the savings in local clean energy and energy efficiency.

In late July, WCI released its draft proposal for a regional carbon cap, but the draft doesn't yet reflect the high caliber of leadership Gov. Christine Gregoire has shown in championing climate solutions over the past three years.

To deliver real results, the WCI draft must be strengthened in three key areas:

• Reducing the role of carbon "offsets." Under the proposed draft, most of the emission reductions could come from "offsets" — taking credit for actions outside the region or in sectors not covered by the cap. For example, a coal plant could simply purchase offsets from a reforestation project, instead of developing cleaner energy technology that actually reduces emissions. Allowing too many offsets frustrates our efforts to reduce fossil-fuel dependence. And while some offsets can be useful, many of them just don't work. Offsets should be limited to a small fraction — no more than 10 percent — of the emission reductions required.

• Auctioning pollution rights. Giving pollution permits to polluters for free would disadvantage hydropower utilities and generate windfall profits at the expense of the public. Auctioning pollution allowances is simpler and fairer. Auction proceeds can be reinvested in accelerating the transition to a clean-energy future and providing assistance to consumers to ease the burden of high fossil-fuel prices.

• Including all major pollution sources. The draft proposal wouldn't cover transportation — responsible for half Washington's global-warming pollution — until 2015. That's way too long to wait to tackle the biggest driver of our fossil-fuel dependence. A cap on the carbon released from transportation fuels will increase investment in cleaner cars, cleaner fuels and better transportation choices.

We have a responsibility to our children and grandchildren to stop talking and start solving the challenge of climate change and fossil fuel dependence.

The West Coast has everything it takes to deliver climate solutions and build a sustainable prosperity. WCI should unleash that economic power with a clear, comprehensive commitment to get the job done — no loopholes, no giveaways and full coverage of the economy. When it does, Washington can deliver real climate solutions, and our economy will be on a path toward recovery from our crippling fossil-fuel dependence.