Transportation and energy ministers from 21 economies in the Asia-Pacific region have agreed to make their transportation systems cleaner and more energy-efficient for livable, low-carbon communities.

At the APEC meeting, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood listens to Alana Chávez-Langdon, vice president of government relations and public affairs, ECOtality. [Environmental News?Service]

The announcement came during the first-ever joint Transportation and Energy Ministerial Conference held by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the principal economic organization for the region.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu hosted the San Francisco meeting on Tuesday. It was followed on Wednesday by a transportation ministerial meeting, during which APEC transportation ministers further discussed promoting innovative, environmentally sustainable transportation.

"To create jobs and lay the foundation for a prosperous future, we must grow our economies while staying mindful of 21st-century challenges like climate change and energy efficiency," Secretary LaHood said.

"Our roadways, runways, railways, waterways, and transit systems all must move greater numbers of people and products while leaving a smaller environmental footprint," said LaHood.

The transportation sector accounts for two-thirds of U.S. oil use and contributes one-third of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions," observed LaHood.

"Transportation is directly tied to our energy challenges," Secretary Chu said. "To achieve economic prosperity, strengthen energy security, and protect the environment, we can - and must - move to a sustainable transportation future."

"Transport consumes about 19 percent of the world energy supply and produces about 23 percent of the carbon emissions," said Chu. "I would say transportation and energy as well as the environmental issues surrounding it are really in many cases at the core of the problems and challenges of this energy and climate situation we find ourselves in."

Recognizing that transportation accounts for a large share of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, the APEC ministers directed their energy and transportation working groups to study ways to make their transportation systems more energy-efficient.

Promoting green growth is expected to be one of the priorities of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Honolulu in November.