The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Wednesday announced that it is providing the public an additional 60 days to offer their comments on a preliminary global warming rule that will reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants - a major contributor to global warming. The new deadline for comments is March 13, 2007.

Under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, seven Northeast states agreed to implement a cap-and-trade program that will be the first mandatory cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas pollution in United States history. A preliminary draft regulatory proposal was released by DEC on December 5, 2006. The additional time will allow more New Yorkers to offer their views on this critical issue.

Governor Eliot Spitzer is fully committed to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and in his State of the State address said, "New York should also build on its existing regional compact to address climate change. I have already started speaking with other governors about the need to link and expand our climate change initiatives. This is something that can and must be achieved."

Public comments should be submitted to: NYRGGI@gw.dec.state.ny.us or can be mailed to: Department of Environmental Conservation, Climate Change Office, 14th floor, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233.

According to scientists at the National Climatic Data Center, the 2006 average annual temperature for the contiguous United States was the warmest on record.