Editorial: Urgency of global warming

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2007 | 7:04 a.m.

At the National Governors Association meeting in Washington this week, governors from five Western states agreed to work together to fight global warming.

The Associated Press reported that global warming in the West is an urgent issue because it is expected to worsen the drought and the fire danger in the region, so the governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington said they would set a regional goal to reduce greenhouse gases.

The fact that Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons is not part of this group is an embarrassment for our state. After all, scientists believe that the Southwest will be hit the worst by global warming, with higher than normal temperatures.

The governors believe their bipartisan agreement is just a start. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson predicted a domino effect of states taking action. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said other governors must be encouraged to join.

We agree. This really should be a no-brainer, including for our governor, who likes to remind people of his scientific background in hydrology and geology. Nevada should be leading the effort to combat global warming.

Instead of chasing such unproved technologies as coal liquefaction, as Gibbons wants, Nevada should be developing its abundance of clean energy sources - solar, wind and geothermal. That would go a long way toward reducing greenhouse gases. The state just needs someone to champion the cause.

Gov. Gibbons?