Thank you to Seth Bornstein for his article on climate change’s role in weather phenomena we are facing throughout the globe. Clearly, we are fast approaching the "tipping point" about which scientists have been warning us for years. One would think that our federal government would be marshaling all its resources to reduce our country’s carbon footprint. Yet many in Congress are more concerned about Hunter Biden’s indictment than taking serious steps toward this end. In fact, many on the right are actually trying to roll back some of the $392 billion in climate measures passed last year as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.
President Biden has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas pollution by 50% from the 2005 levels by 2030. To accomplish this ambitious goal, we can’t allow these measures to be watered down. In addition, Congress must reform the permitting process so that clean energy projects and transmission lines can be brought online faster. Also, Congress must pass a tax on fossil fuel producers’ products based on their carbon emissions. The taxes collected should be paid out to all American households in the form of a dividend, so they don’t bear the brunt of higher prices.
According to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, 74% Americans believe climate change is happening and 61 % believe it is mostly human caused. 71% believe global warming will affect future generations.* Yet it is clear that too many of our lawmakers are listening to another set of constituents, the fossil fuel industry.
*Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs and Attitudes. June 2023.
Barry Engelman, Santa Monica