This week, two utility companies made clear statements about the need to address climate change and their role in doing so. On the West Coast, California’s PG&E withdrew from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in response to the Chamber’s continued skepticism towards the science of climate change. On the East Coast, New Jersey’s PSEG highlighted the importance of a lower-carbon future by calling for a federal renewable portfolio standard (RPS)–and announcing that the utility is adopting a form of RPS on its own.

PSEG will cut its carbon emissions 25 percent by 2025. Such a drastic cut will necessitate greater investment in clean energy as well as in energy efficiency measures; but with New Jersey solar installations booming, at least part of PSEG’s low-carbon solution is clear.

“Combating climate change is an extraordinary challenge, an issue of unprecedented scale ands scope,” [CEO and chairman Ralph] Izzo said. “It must be addressed with a corresponding degree of leadership, cooperation, and investment.”

This is directly in line with the reasons PG&E gave for leaving the Chamber. Chairman and CEO Pete Darbee believes the Chamber has passed up the opportunity to be a leader in addressing climate change. In the company blog post that described PG&E’s reasons for leaving the Chamber, Darbee said:

In our opinion, an intellectually honest argument over the best policy response to the challenges of climate change is one thing; disingenuous attempts to diminish or distort the reality of these challenges are quite another.

These two utilities are hardly alone–we’re just noting two specific examples in a single week of companies making a firm stance for climate change action. Why is it that the corporations who might be facing big up-front investments to meet emission-reduction goals are so adamant about the need to do so? A GreenBiz article this week recaps the thoughts of senior executives during the ongoing Climate Week in New York (download the full report to which they allude here, PDF). A global policy would pave the way to standardized pricing for carbon, for one; and they agree–in an echo of PFG&E–that this is the time to rise to the challenge and not continue to minimize or ignore it. Solar power, wind energy, and other renewable energy sectors are in place and waiting for the marketplace in which to fully develop and expand.

California and New Jersey, with their highly successful solar programs, are two examples of forward-thinking governments taking the initiative to start meeting the challenges of a lower carbon economy. With public utilities and private corporations both calling out for change, their governments may start listening–and working together to respond.