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The District became the 58th city to join C40, an association of major cities around the globe undertaking efforts to combat the effects of global warming. In a news release announcing D.C.’s membership, Mayor Vince Gray’s office said that the District has reduced its pollution levels by 12.5 percent since 2006.

In 2006, D.C. emitted 10.2 million of carbon dioxide or its equivalents. Last year, that figure dropped to 8.9 million tons. The District government’s own share of that was 527,000 tons of carbon dioxide or its equivalents.

The C40 group was organized in 2005 and is currently chaired by New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg. Among the other U.S. cities in the club are Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Seattle, Philadelphia, Portland, Ore. and Austin, Texas.

In the press release, Gray talked up his administration’s efforts to combat pollution and climate change:

The efforts of our local government and partners in the private sector are already bearing fruit, and we have substantially reduced greenhouse-gas emissions while growing our economy and population. The District is proving that we can build a thriving city and economy while reducing our environmental footprint

C40’s own data on the District say that D.C. is on track to halve its 2006 pollution levels by 2036.