Dear friend,
Earth Day is coming up this Sunday, April 22nd, and this year the climate debate is finally over. With the recent elections, Washington is waking up to the reality of global warming.
Even the coal and oil industries are coming to the table -- they know we've got to take action, so now they're looking for the best deal.
And boy, have they ever spotted one.
It's obvious that we've got to cap our emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon, and then cut them back as quickly as possible. How we'll allocate pollution permits is an open question. One good option is a government auction. Many economists believe a carbon tax would be even better* -- fairer, most efficient, and easily enforced. The point is, polluters must pay.
But here's a dirty secret: many coal-burning utilities and oil companies are pushing for a gigantic giveaway. They want "grandfathered" permits to pollute at current levels, at no cost. And unless we speak up, they might get away with it.
Don't let them. Speak up now, at:
http://earthday.net/sky3/
This kind of giveaway is just wrong. It would:
Reward the companies causing most of the problem;
Give them permits that could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars a year, for free;
Penalize companies that have done the right thing by already reducing their pollution.
Virtually all climate experts agree that we've got to freeze global warming pollution now and then reduce it at least 80% by 2050, with strong milestones along the way.
It's a good idea to harness market forces, maybe with an auction, to make sure polluters pay the cost of reducing their impact on our climate. To reduce emissions, we can simply put fewer permits on the market each year than the year before. As a result, the price of polluting will go up, as it should.
It's also important that we use all the revenue from an auction for public purposes, like speeding up our transition to renewable energy, creating green jobs, and helping people, especially those who are most vulnerable, to cope with the impacts of climate change and to participate in a green economy.
But first, we've got to stop the giveaway.
Join us today in standing up for a fair approach to saving our climate, at:
http://earthday.net/sky3/
We'll deliver your online statement to your Senators and Representative in Washington.
This Earth Day, there's nothing more important you can do than to speak up on this. After all, the sky belongs to all of us.
Thank you.
- Kathleen
Kathleen Rogers
President
Earth Day Network
Wednesday, April 18th, 2007
* The Wall Street Journal recently reported that many economists, surprisingly, favor a tax: "Is it Time for a New Tax on Energy? Economists Say Government Should Foster Alternatives -- But Not How Bush Proposes", February 9th, 2007, Page A6.
Investigate... decide... act!
Earth Day is coming up this Sunday, April 22nd, and this year the climate debate is finally over. With the recent elections, Washington is waking up to the reality of global warming.
Even the coal and oil industries are coming to the table -- they know we've got to take action, so now they're looking for the best deal.
And boy, have they ever spotted one.
It's obvious that we've got to cap our emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly carbon, and then cut them back as quickly as possible. How we'll allocate pollution permits is an open question. One good option is a government auction. Many economists believe a carbon tax would be even better* -- fairer, most efficient, and easily enforced. The point is, polluters must pay.
But here's a dirty secret: many coal-burning utilities and oil companies are pushing for a gigantic giveaway. They want "grandfathered" permits to pollute at current levels, at no cost. And unless we speak up, they might get away with it.
Don't let them. Speak up now, at:
http://earthday.net/sky3/
This kind of giveaway is just wrong. It would:
Reward the companies causing most of the problem;
Give them permits that could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars a year, for free;
Penalize companies that have done the right thing by already reducing their pollution.
Virtually all climate experts agree that we've got to freeze global warming pollution now and then reduce it at least 80% by 2050, with strong milestones along the way.
It's a good idea to harness market forces, maybe with an auction, to make sure polluters pay the cost of reducing their impact on our climate. To reduce emissions, we can simply put fewer permits on the market each year than the year before. As a result, the price of polluting will go up, as it should.
It's also important that we use all the revenue from an auction for public purposes, like speeding up our transition to renewable energy, creating green jobs, and helping people, especially those who are most vulnerable, to cope with the impacts of climate change and to participate in a green economy.
But first, we've got to stop the giveaway.
Join us today in standing up for a fair approach to saving our climate, at:
http://earthday.net/sky3/
We'll deliver your online statement to your Senators and Representative in Washington.
This Earth Day, there's nothing more important you can do than to speak up on this. After all, the sky belongs to all of us.
Thank you.
- Kathleen
Kathleen Rogers
President
Earth Day Network
Wednesday, April 18th, 2007
* The Wall Street Journal recently reported that many economists, surprisingly, favor a tax: "Is it Time for a New Tax on Energy? Economists Say Government Should Foster Alternatives -- But Not How Bush Proposes", February 9th, 2007, Page A6.
Investigate... decide... act!
