Global warming emissions rise despite vow

Emissions of the major global warming gas carbon dioxide in New England and Eastern Canada have increased since 2001, though regional leaders promised that year to gradually reduce those emissions, according to a report released yesterday.

New England governors and Eastern Canadian premiers pledged five years ago to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 10 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2020.

But carbon dioxide emissions -- largely from power plants, cars, and trucks -- have continued to increase and are projected to be as much as 50 percent higher than 1990 levels by 2020.

That conclusion, by the research and advocacy group Environment Northeast, was released yesterday in a report, the "Climate Change Roadmap," that also lays out a 10-point blueprint for each state and province to reverse the trend and meet the 2020 goal.

"The case that we must address the damage being caused by global warming has been well made," said Daniel Sosland, executive director of the nonprofit group, headquartered in Maine.

"The Climate Change Roadmap provides a way to begin that work today."

The roadmap largely focuses on reducing emissions through energy conservation and transportation changes.

It calls for state and provincial laws requiring increased energy efficiency for buildings and appliances and reduced greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles and power plants.

The report also recommends that the region's 11 states and provinces accurately inventory how much carbon is being absorbed in its dense forests and determine whether the region has underground geological formations that could store carbon dioxide.

The report calls for more unified regulation in the region to jointly lower carbon dioxide emissions. For example, a patchwork of residential and commercial building codes exists for such basic construction practices as using proper insulation.

If states updated and Canada enacted uniform and strict building energy codes and enforced them, the report says, energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions would be dramatically reduced and customers would save money.

Environment Northeast also recommends minimum energy efficiency standards for consumer appliances, from lamps to DVD players. The report urges states and provinces to pass laws requiring governmental agencies to buy energy-efficient appliances and vehicles.

The report also lays out steps utilities can take to reduce emissions through the purchase of energy from efficient producers. "The Climate Roadmap offers a new and thought provoking vision of [the] energy future and proposes a number of innovative actions," said Robert H. McLaren, president of Massachusetts and New Hampshire Distribution for National Grid, an energy delivery company.

If New England and Eastern Canada were considered a country, their carbon dioxide emissions would be among the top 25 in the world, according to Environment Northeast.

In 2001, frustrated by the lack of federal laws to address climate change, the Conference of New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers agreed to a long-term goal of reducing emissions by about 75 percent by an unspecified year.

They also set short-term goals, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2010 and 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020.

But the region has moved in the opposite direction, according to an Environment Northeast analysis of North American emissions data. While four New England states -- with the exception of Massachusetts and Rhode Island -- have joined other Northeast states in a regional agreement to lower power plant emissions, too little is being done in other areas to meet the targets, environmentalists say.

The 250-page report emphasizes programs individual states and provinces can enact, but Environment Northeast says federal legislation will also eventually have to be passed to meet longterm goals past 2020.

Environment Northeast officials say their report is particularly important as Massachusetts, the biggest greenhouse gas emitter in the region, prepares for the Jan. 4 inauguration of Governor-elect Deval Patrick, who has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions, including joining the regional greenhouse gas agreement. They hope the state will serve as a leader.

The group submitted a summary of the recommendations last week to Patrick's transition team.

Beth Daley can be reached at bdaley@globe.com.