Livingstone and Clinton climate initiative - Greenpeace reaction

London mayor Ken Livingstone has joined Bill Clinton in Los Angeles to launch a pact to help major cities around the world cut greenhouse gas emissions. Twenty-two cities, including Berlin, Mexico City, New York, Paris, and Rome, have joined the Clinton Climate Initiative, which plans to help cities reduce the amount of carbon dioxide they release into the environment through methods such as a purchasing consortium to lower the prices of energy saving products.

Greenpeace policy director Simon Reddy said:

"Today's announcement is a big step forward in the fight against climate change. Cities and urban areas account for seventy-five per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and this initiative will help empower them to take action and attack the heart of the problem. At a time when international diplomacy is struggling and national governments are failing to deliver, this is the type of bottom up initiative that empowers cities. It's very welcome news."

Mayor Livingstone and the GLA are taking climate change extremely seriously, making London a world leader in delivering the solutions we need to embrace to fight global warming. Sharing that experience with cities around the world is welcome and urgently needed.

Under Ken Livingstone London has:

- Introduced congestion charging which proved effective at reducing traffic and also cutting CO2 emissions by 16%. Now proposes to band charges to reflect carbon emissions from vehicles, with more polluting vehicles being more heavily charged.

- Set up a partnership with Utility EDF to identify and develop sites in London for decentralised energy - delivering energy locally through on-site renewables, efficiency measures and combined heating, cooling and electricity generation plants.

- Launched the London Climate Change Agency - following a proposal from Deputy Mayor Nicky Gavron - to deliver ground-breaking energy efficiency and renewable energy projects across London.

- Announced the building of zero emissions homes in the Thames Gateway. Greenpeace will also be working with the London Development Agency to deliver the project, which will be up to 1000 units in size. The site for the first 200 units has been announced and is at Gallions Reach.

- Set renewable energy targets for London by 2010 that would see the equivalent of 10,000 homes heated and 100,000 homes of electricity supply coming from renewable energy within the city.

- In the London Energy Strategy the Mayor expects major developments to generate at least ten per cent of their energy needs from renewable sources. Boroughs are encouraged to introduce similar policies and to establish at least one showcase renewable energy project in their area and one zero carbon development.

Notes

Some 70 per cent of London's CO2 emissions come from powering London's buildings, including domestic, commercial and public buildings. Therefore energy efficiency, onsite renewables and combined heat/cooling and power can have the greatest impact on the cities emissions.

For more information contact Greenpeace press office 0207 865 8255