California Gubernatorial Hopeful Vows to Reverse Emissions Rules


Margaret C. Whitman, the former chief executive of eBay who declared her candidacy for the California governorship on Tuesday, hopes to roll back California’s law requiring deep cuts in the state’s greenhouse gas emissions.

“As governor, I would work hard to protect our environment,” Ms. Whitman said Wednesday, according to The San Diego Union Tribune. “But the needs of our environment have to be balanced with the needs of our people and the needs of our economy. We have too many overreaching environmental regulations that have left us at an economic disadvantage to our neighboring states.”

Ms. Whitman, a Republican, is in the race to replace the current governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose term is expiring.

Mr. Schwarzenegger signed the law requiring the emissions cuts in 2006.

Ms. Whitman’s chief Democratic opponent at the moment, Gavin Newsom, the mayor of San Francisco, wrote in CleanTechnica today that Ms. Whitman’s proposal amounted to “backwards thinking.”

On the third anniversary of the new emissions rule’s passage, Mr. Newsom wrote, “we should acknowledge that its oft-vilified targets are not only achievable but also actually good for California’s economy.”

Mr. Newsom’s environmental initiatives include requiring a sharp increase in recycling and composting in San Francisco. He also praised the San Francisco Airport’s installation last week of carbon offset kiosks, which enable travelers to invest in tree-planting and other projects intended to offset the greenhouse gas emissions associated with their flights.

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