EMISSIONS cuts in North America are a step closer after this week鈥檚 announcement that the US, Canada and Mexico have committed to creating a map of the biggest sources of carbon across the region.
Plans for the 鈥淣orth American Carbon Atlas鈥� were unveiled at the , which took place on 9 and 10 August in Guadalajara, Mexico. The project aims to point the finger at carbon-spewing industries, such as oil production, and to locate the best areas for carbon capture and storage.
鈥淭he atlas aims to point out carbon-spewing industries and locate areas for carbon capture and storage鈥�
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The plan has been cautiously welcomed by climate researchers. 鈥淚t will be important for the database to follow changes from year to year,鈥� says Diana Liverman of the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford. But if the project is well done it could be the basis for carbon trading, she adds.
The announcement came as the Pentagon declared that climate change is a threat to national security. This could help make the case for emissions cuts when the US Senate decides on the fate of climate legislation passed in June by the House of Representatives.
