I can’t let this nifty news go unmentioned—King County, home to Seattle, Bellevue, and the bulk of Puget Sound’s population, is taking the lead in trying to reduce the climate impacts of new development:

King County Executive Ron Sims plans to introduce legislation that would allow the county to reject or modify development projects because of their effect on global warming.

If the proposal is passed by the Metropolitan King County Council, county land-use officials believe King County would be the first jurisdiction in the nation to take that step.

Cool: first in the nation. It’s good to see this corner of the continent forging ahead.