WCI

Zion Canyon and the unassuming Virgin River that created it. Utah is a member of the WCI.

I recently returned from a long-awaited trip to Zion and Bryce canyons in Utah, two geologically fabulous places carved largely by the forces of rivers and rain. A few major climate developments met me back at the office: federal climate legislation had died, western states and provinces in the US and Canada took one step closer to addressing climate change despite federal inaction, and the great Steve Schneider (who taught me and so many others that being a scientist doesn't mean taking a backseat in policy-making) had passed away. May he rest in peace.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California addressing the 194-nation U.N. climate talks (United Nations)

As the clock winds down, and countries are nowhere near an agreement, subnational leaders from Canada, Nigeria, France and Algeria, led by California's "Gubernator," announced today in a press conference at Bella that they plan to advance the concept of a new regional coalition to fast track the results of the Copenhagen negotiations.

While US federal climate activities were full of hope last week, the mood on the west coast turned sour.

A report released by the Western Business Roundtable (WBR) in late February, for all intents and purposes, attempted to thwart efforts by several Western Climate Intiative (WCI) states. These include New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington, which were in the midst of heated debates over climate bills in their state houses. Among other dire warnings and false assumptions, the WBR report claimed that the cap-and-trade program would prolong the recession, drive away investment, and do nothing to combat climate change.

Leonardo DiCaprio. The Rolling Stones.

Now add seven western state governors and four Canadian premiers. These are the most recent riders of the carbon offsets bandwagon. Carbon offsets play a central role in the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a carbon Cap-and-Trade scheme first introduced in July, that includes seven U.S. states (Arizona, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington) and four Canadian provinces (British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec).