Legislators battled to protect environment during session

Editor,

During my work this legislative session as an Environment New Mexico intern, I saw firsthand an array of attacks undertaken against environmental regulations.

Numerous bills were introduced that would have hindered our state’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (as well as other pollutants) in the future. In addition, several bills would have reduced the strictness of existing regulations or would have hindered the state’s regulatory agencies’ ability to enforce environmental law.

One bill in particular (SB 489), had it been signed into law, would have threatened New Mexico’s participation in the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), a regional cap and trade partnership with about 10 other western states, including Arizona and Colorado, which is scheduled to begin operating in 2012.

A regional cap-and-trade program in the American west will be a vital step in the development of renewable energy in our state and country.

America’s economic dependence on fossil fuel is not only environmentally destructive, but it is the greatest threat to our long-term economic prosperity. Well-designed and strictly enforced cap-and-trade programs reward energy companies that invest in renewables and penalize those that do not.

Over time, the amount of carbon permits available through the program decreases, legally mandating a reduction in emissions.

The cap-and-trade program proposed in the WCI provides a smart, competitive and market-driven mechanism we can use to decrease our dependence on electricity from fossil fuels.

We can also encourage the development of renewable energy infrastructure that will provide electricity and employment opportunities to New Mexicans for generations to come.

We are grateful that our legislators did the right thing and stood up for New Mexico’s environment by voting down the bills that attacked the WCI and other regulations that would have put New Mexico’s environment and energy development in jeopardy.

However, it is unlikely that these battles are over.

We must remain vigilant and prepare for the impending 2012 legislative session battles.

Fortunately, New Mexico remains on track to a cleaner and greener future, thanks in large part to environmental activists across the state and the support of so many unsung heroes in the legislature.

Luc Mouchet
UNM student