Jerry Brown pushes beyond state’s previous target, as well as Obama’s national plan, to get carbon dioxide output 40% lower than 1990 levels in next 15 years
California would aggressively reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 under a plan announced on Wednesday that steps up the state’s previously established target, which has cut emissions partly by forcing companies to pay for their carbon pollution.
Governor Jerry Brown’s executive order is loftier than a federal goal that also aims to curb global warming, but it gives the state more time to achieve it. Brown’s plan lacks specifics, but he previously has cited increasing renewable electricity sources, reducing petroleum use in vehicles, doubling the energy efficiency of existing buildings and make heating fuels cleaner as ways to reduce emissions.