30 US Cities to Measure and Report GHG Emissions

11 August 2008

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability will work with at least 30 urban centers in the US to measure their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and then disclose this inventory data to the CDP. Participating cities include New York, Las Vegas, Denver, West Palm Beach, St. Paul and New Orleans.

Under the new CDP Cities program, the cities will use ICLEI’s Local Government Operations Protocol and software tools to assess their greenhouse gas emissions profile. Twenty-one cities were announced at launch, with at least nine others expected to take part in the pilot project.

Over 70% of total global emissions are generated from cities and if you don’t measure these emissions, you cannot manage them. This is a vital step for city councils who wish to gain a better understanding of their own impact and by improving their understanding of risks and opportunities associated with climate change, best prepare their cities for a carbon constrained world.

—Paul Dickinson, CEO of CDP

The CDP Cities program is a voluntary disclosure process. Cities will submit their responses to CDP by 31 October 2008. All responses will be announced and published in the first CDP Cities Report and ICLEI Local Action Network Report in January 2009 respectively.

The first 21 participating cities are: Albany, NY; Albuquerque, NM; Anchorage, AK; Arlington, VA; Burlington, VT; Denver, CO; Dubuque, IA; Edina, MN; Fairfield, IA; Haverford, PA; Las Vegas, NV; New Orleans, LA; New York, NY; North Little Rock, AR; Pacific Grove, CA; Park City, UT; Portland, OR; Rohnert Park, CA; Saint Paul, MN; Washougal, WA; and West Palm Beach, FL.