Victoria, Canada (GLOBE-Net) - British Columbia and Manitoba will join with 30 U.S. states and a U.S. Indian tribe as a member of The Climate Registry. The newly-formed organization will develop and manage a common greenhouse gas emissions reporting system.

The database will be capable of supporting multiple greenhouse gas emissions reporting and emissions reduction policies for its member states/tribes and reporting entities. It will also provide an accurate, complete, consistent, transparent, and verified set of greenhouse gas emissions data from reporting entities, supported by a robust accounting and verification infrastructure. The Registry will accept reporting data in January 2008.

British Columbia and Manitoba have committed to sign the Climate Registry’s Statement of Principles and Goals and expect to be recognized as founding members at a meeting later this month. The list of charter members includes the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming and the Campo Kumeyaay Nation.

A copy of The Climate Registry’s Statement of Principles and Goals can be found here.

“The Climate Registry will provide a common platform for states, provinces and regional partnerships to measure and report emissions of greenhouse gases in an accurate, transparent manner consistent across borders and industry sectors,” said BC Premier Gordon Campbell. “Accurate measurement of greenhouse gas emissions is the first step to manage and reduce emissions and British Columbia is reaching out to other states and provinces and in the months and years ahead we will do our best to show the benefits of these partnerships across North America.”

A number of environmental and climate change initiatives were announced in BC’s 2007 throne speech, including a pledge to reduce B.C.’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 33 per cent below current levels by 2020, equivalent to 10 per cent below 1990 levels. The province also plans to set new tailpipe emissions standards for all new vehicles sold in B.C., to be phased in between 2009 and 2016.

British Columbia recently joined with five western U.S. states in the Western Regional Climate Action Initiative (WRCAI) to develop and implement a market-based carbon trading system.

Manitoba recently entered into an agreement with the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) and the Canadian Climate Exchange to “design market based solutions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Manitoba and beyond its borders”.