by Bill Dawson

The Kyoto Protocol to limit greenhouse gas emissions takes effect in many nations on February 16, 2005, but the United States, which signed but never ratified the treaty, will not be subject to its mandates.

Even so, the activation of the climate accord presents a prominent news peg for U.S. environmental reporters to explore various angles of the issue.

To paraphrase the enduring eco-slogan credited to Rene Dubos, a journalistic watchword for climate change coverage in 2005 might be "Think Globally, Report Locally."

Environmentalists' failure to win battles over climate policy in Washington has helped shift much of the action and debate to the state and local levels. There, and in the business arena, a wealth of post-Kyoto coverage opportunities present themselves -- not only reporting on new and proposed initiatives but tracking the progress of programs already in effect.

Last year, The Economist reported that President Bush's abandonment of his 2000 campaign pledge to cut power plants' greenhouse emissions and of the Kyoto treaty itself had "fomented a backlash in the States."

Perhaps the most dramatic example came last September in California, when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger approved a state law requiring the sale of vehicles with reduced emissions of greenhouse gases. Automakers promptly sued to stop the rule.

Developments in that lawsuit will bear watching far beyond California's borders because of the influence of that state's environmental policies elsewhere. The seven Northeastern states, at least, stretching from New Jersey to Maine, are expected to adopt or consider adopting the California vehicle regulations. Others may also take up the issue.

In this regard, the website of an advocacy group working in the Northeast -- Clean Air Cool Planet -- might prove useful.

Overviews of state government (and multi-state) efforts are available at the Pew Center for Global Climate Change website, which published a report, "Learning from State Action on Climate Change," in December 2005.

The Environmental Protection Agency's State and Local Climate Change Program has helped state and local officials devise climate-related actions since the 1990s. The program's website provides links to state action plans, case studies and other pertinent information.

Possible stories in the wake of the Kyoto agreement's activation might examine the status of state action plans that have been adopted or are being contemplated, plus comparisons of progress made toward goals adopted under different plans.

One subject that offers reporting opportunities in a number of locations is the expanding campaign that advocates state policies called Renewable Portfolio Standards. These standards stipulate minimum percentages of electricity that must be generated from renewable sources. Environmentalists and their allies are pushing such policies in states that have not adopted them and promoting more aggressive standards in some states where they are already in place.

An overview of the issue and information on specific state plans is available at the website of the Renewable Energy Policy Project.

One place where the renewable energy issue will be engaged in coming weeks is Texas, whose track record can also be informative for journalists in other states. During the current legislative session, a Texas coalition of environmental, consumer, religious and other groups has been gearing up to support a December 2005 recommendation by the Texas Energy Planning Council to enhance the state's renewable standard.

At the local level, one area of increased activity involves environmentally friendly building techniques and standards. That's particularly relevant for climate change considerations because these construction methods generally include provisions for energy efficiency and conservation -- and, where fossil fuels are used to generate electricity, to reduce greenhouse gases. An informative website for learning about the subject is maintained by the U.S. Green Building Council, a building industry coalition advocating "environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy" structures. The council sponsors the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system, which has been embraced by a growing number of municipal governments.

Reporters might want to use another program to compare municipal activities in their own locations. The Austin Green Building Program in Texas can be useful as a measuring stick.

Other sources of information on state and local government initiatives include the Climate Institute's website, which has many relevant links, and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, whose American affiliate manages a program called U.S. Cities for Climate Protection.

Besides providing information on state government programs, the Pew Center also publishes profiles of climate-related projects by about 40 member companies in its Business Environmental Leadership Council.

Another source of business-related information is the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies, which operates a project called the Investor Network on Climate Risk.

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute held a briefing last November that highlighted examples of several business activities. Papers delivered at the meeting can be found at http://www.eesi.org/briefings/2004/Energy%20&%20Climate/11.18.04%20Business%20GHG%20Initiatives/announcement.htm.

If reporters want to familiarize themselves with some of the latest discussions by environmentalists on new grassroots climate strategies, they can check out accounts of a conference held in January 2005 at Middlebury College in Vermont, which was largely organized by students. An article on the college's website provides details of the meeting, links to Associated Press coverage of the event, and dispatches by writer Bill McKibben for the online magazine Grist.

One initiative to emerge from the meeting, the Flat Earth Award, may signal the adoption of an edgier attitude by some activists trying to change minds and generate action related to climate change. The prize will be given to "the outstanding climate-change naysayer" on the basis of online voting.