The U.S. Climate Action Partnership, formed in 2006 and launched publicly on January 22, 2007, is a co-operative group of businesses and leading environmental organizations. The group's primary purpose is to call on the U.S. government to require significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
USCAP's principles and goals are summarized in their brochure "A Call For Action":
We, the members of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, pledge to work with the President, the Congress, and all other stakeholders to enact an environmentally effective, economically sustainable, and fair climate change program consistent with our principles at the earliest practicable date.
Targets
The USCAP Blueprint calls for the United States to act quickly to establish a mandatory, national economy-wide climate protection program that includes emission reduction targets for total U.S. emissions and for capped sectors that are:
97%-102% of 2005 levels by 2012
80%-86% of 2005 levels by 2020
58% of 2005 levels by 2030
20% of 2005 levels by 2050.
These targets do not comply with the IPCC proposed target reductions of 25 to 40% of 1990 levels by 2020 and 80 to 95% of 1990 levels by 2050 for Annex 1 countries under Scenario A to limit Greenhouse gases to 450ppm
all left the lobbyist collaboration and are not members anymore.
Organizational structure
Journalist Timothy P. Carney, writing for the conservative think tankCapital Research Center, says that USCAP has no in-house staff. He says that, like other lobbying coalitions, it manages its affairs through outside organizations to function and coordinate the activities of its members. He further asserts that USCAP contracts with the Meridian Institute, Lighthouse Consulting, and government relations firm Powell Tate Weber Shandwick to carry out its day-to-day operations.
Controversy
Questions have been raised about the same companies sponsoring both the partnership and lobbying groups that oppose its goals. Many of the members of USCAP were previously involved with the Global Climate Coalition, whose intention was to block or minimize the effectiveness of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's demands for GHG curbing legislation. After ceasing official operation in 1997 GCC was victorious in having pressured the US into refusing to ratify the Kyoto Protocols. Although many of these corporations have now become interested in halting climate change by 2050 through USCAP, both Yvo de Boer, UN Climate Chief and the EU have heavily criticized this long term plan for reductions as offering no short or mid-term solutions to the immediate problems of climate change. According to Reuters, Robert Murray, chairman and chief executive of Murray Energy Corp., branded more than 20 major corporations that make up the U.S. Climate Action Partnership "un-American" for allying with environmental groups he calls "enemies of coal."
Former members
On February 17, 2010 Five of the member companies withdrew from the organization The three companies ConocoPhillips, BP and Caterpillar said that "USCAP has served its purpose and that they prefer to pursue their interests independently" The other two were Xerox and insurance broker Marsh who were listed as members in January 2009 Ford Motor Company announced their withdrawal from the partnership on January 23, 2012.
