In a recent report, Sustainable Environment: North Carolina 20/20, it states that more North Carolinians are exposed to more ozone than any other pollutant, making it a very serious public heath issue.

    Ground-level ozone is created in the atmosphere when an excess of nitrogen oxide combines with volatile organic compounds in the presence of ozone.  It goes on to say that vehicles and coal-fired power plants are the greatest contributors to ozone.  What they fail to mention is that those same causes of ozone (coal-fired plants & vehicles) also produce the majority of global warming pollution in North Carolina.  In conclusion, the report makes a number of suggestions that would help to decrease not only ground level ozone, but indirectly reduce global warming pollutions as well.  The report states that it will be important to maintain total forest acres and diversity as measured by age, class, and forest type through 2010.  It also states that it is important to maintain current wetland acreage and riparian buffers in each river basin.  They encourage an increase total area of permanently protected land by one million acres by 2010.  Finally, they state that it is important to incorporate smart growth management strategies in all local governments.

    These specific targets of the report are advantageous to lowering carbon emissions because they will act as sinks.  North Carolina, however, has yet to implement any state-level initiatives to address global warming.  On the other hand, North Carolina has provided businesses, industries and citizens with many environmental incentives to implement green energy practices.

Fortunately, voluntary strides to address the issue have been made by public and commercial entities.  For instance, NC GreenPower, an independent non-profit organization, accepts financial contributions from NC citizens and businesses to supplement the state’s existing power supply with more renewable "green" energy.  The Million Solar Roof Initiative is an example Federal plan designed to improve the utilization of solar energy.  The NC Solar Center is the coordinator for the North Carolina MSRI partnership.  Eight community partnerships have been formed across the state in Asheville and surrounding counties, the Town of Chapel Hill, the city and county of Durham, Guilford County, Charlotte, Wilmington, Fayetteville and Watauga County. The Solar Center is recruiting additional communities to join the program.