California to discuss linking carbon market to China

California Governor Jerry Brown said on Thursday he will discuss merging carbon trading markets in his state and China when he travels to Asia later this week, Reuters reports, a sign of the governor’s ambition to influence global climate change policy. Brown discussed his plans in a telephone interview after US President Donald Trump announced he would withdraw the United States from the landmark 2015 Paris climate accord. Brown, who vigorously opposes the United States’ withdrawal from the pact, lambasted Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris accord as “insane.” He has been working with states and provinces around the world to set voluntary agreements to address global warming. The governor heads to China on Friday for meetings focused on climate change. California has the largest carbon trading system in the United States and has frequently hosted officials from China, which has launched seven pilot regional trading schemes.