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Climate Capsule: Week of September 8

Monday, September 8, 2008

(National Wildlife Federation)

Week of September 8, 2008

Highlight of the Week
House to Consider Energy Package This Week
When we last saw Congress, a minority of lawmakers continued to block critical measures that could help break America's addiction to oil, give consumers real energy choices, recharge our economy and help solve global warming. Legislation to extend production tax credits for solar, wind, geothermal and other renewable sources passed the House again and again only to fall short time after time in the Senate, once falling just a single vote short, with 59 Senators voting to end a filibuster.

This week, the House goes back to work. Speaker Nancy Pelosi will introduce a new energy bill on Tuesday, with a vote planned by the end of the week. It's expected to include several items that have already passed the House, like a national goal for getting a portion of our electricity from renewable sources (referred to as a renewable electricity standard, or RES), extending critical renewable energy tax credits and rolling back subsidies for Big Oil.
 
Including a renewable electricity standard in this bill would be the strongest signal yet that America is serious about ending our dependence on fossil fuels. "The failure to close debate was a victory for the major oil companies," reported the Washington Post last December as Senate Republican leadership filibustered a robust energy bill that would've set a national renewable energy standard of 15 percent. Right now, a patchwork of state standards fills the void created by the lack of a national standard.
 
Still uncertain is whether the bill will open more of America's public lands and waters to Big Oil. In the last eight years, oil and gas drilling on America's public lands has increased by 260 percent while the price of gas has more than doubled. More drilling has neither lowered gas prices nor eased our dependence on foreign oil - it's that simple. Even the Bush administration's own Department of Energy admits more drilling would only cut prices at the pump a few cents more than a decade from now.
 
Congress should help lead the clean energy revolution and develop “Made in America” solutions to give American families real energy choices, reduce our dependency on oil, create millions of new jobs and reduce global warming pollution. Learn more about the real solutions that would cut our energy costs and ease our addiction to fossil fuels in the National Wildlife Federation's Don't be Fooled fact sheet.

Quote:

"I've spent my life fishing and hunting and I've witnessed firsthand the rapid changes triggered by global warming…We can only solve our climate and energy crisis by cutting carbon emissions and developing new, clean energy sources at the same time. These problems are linked, and so are their solutions."

—Tony Dean, Hall of Fame angler and host of Tony Dean Outdoors.

Economic Message of the Week
Thousands Of New Jobs From Clean Energy

As America confronts the current energy crisis, a new report shows that the U.S. can create two million jobs nationwide by investing in clean energy technologies that will strengthen the economy and fight global warming. The report finds that investing in clean energy would create four times as many jobs as spending the same amount of money within the oil industry.

The available solutions that help families reduce their forced dependency on fossil fuels are the same technologies that will create good paying jobs, recharge America’s economy, solve the climate crisis, and help protect America’s natural resources for our children’s future.
 
Green Recovery – A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy analyzes the potential for a two year, $100 billion green investment program to be an engine for job creation nationwide. This type of investment is a component of a broader clean energy strategy to create a low carbon economy and reduce global warming pollutions, including an economy-wide cap-and-trade program.
 
In addition to creating two million jobs nationwide over two years, a $100 billion initial investment in our clean energy future would:
·        Create roughly triple the number of good jobs — paying at least $16 dollars an hour — as spending the same amount of money within the oil industry. 
·        Bolster employment especially in construction and manufacturing. Construction employment has fallen from 8 million to 7.2 million over the past two years due to the housing bubble collapse. The Green Recovery program can, at the least, bring back these lost 800,000 construction jobs.
 
For the complete report findings please visit www.peri.umass.edu/green_recovery. 

Hurricane Season Heats Up: Train Of Storms Symptomatic Of New Era Of Stronger Storms
As communities assess the damage from Hurricanes Gustav and Hanna, and with Ike moving through the Caribbean, our thoughts and prayers are with those in harm’s way.

This hurricane season is a stark reminder of what science tells us to expect from a new era of stronger hurricanes fueled by global warming: higher wind speeds, more precipitation, and bigger storm surge in the coming decades.

"Although no single weather event can be attributed to global warming, it’s critical to understand that a warming climate is supplying the very conditions that fuel the strongest storms. The latest science paints an alarming picture about what global warming has in store for the U.S. Gulf and Atlantic Coasts: stronger hurricanes, heavier rainfall, and rising sea level," said Dr. Amanda Staudt, Ph.D., of National Wildlife Federation.

Restoration of wetlands, lowlands, and barrier islands can provide a coastal community with the first line of defense against hurricanes. For example, about half of the wetlands around New Orleans have been lost in recent years. Because scientists estimate that every mile of healthy wetlands can trim about 3-9 inches off a storm surge—and an acre of wetlands is estimated to reduce hurricane damage by $3,300—we must restore these wetlands.

"We must account for increasing storm activity and rising sea level when managing our coasts, especially by restoring and protecting coastal wetlands, lowlands, and barrier islands that provide crucial natural levees. To prevent the worst impacts of climate change and limit the impacts on communities and wildlife, we must reduce global warming pollution," Dr. Staudt said.

Find out more about the connection between global warming and stronger hurricanes in the National Wildlife Federation's new report, Global Warming's Wake-Up Call for the U.S. Gulf and Atlantic Coasts.

Pennsylvania’s Climate Action Now
Pennsylvania continues its efforts to address climate change with the first meeting of the Climate Change Advisory Committee, Acting Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger said recently.

The advisory committee was established under the Pennsylvania Climate Change Act and signed by Governor Edward G. Rendell signed in July.

 

“So much of the world around us is dependent on a stable climate,” said Hanger. “As the effects of climate change increase, industries like agriculture and tourism could suffer, infrastructure systems may fail, ecosystems will face an increasing number of invasive species, and regions will be exposed to new diseases that may threaten the public health. We're looking to come up with the best thinking and the best approaches to solving this pressing problem.”

 

The Act established a 21-member advisory committee that is charged with advising the Department of Environmental Protection to implement laws, create a report on potential global warming impacts on Pennsylvania, and develop an action plan for cost-effective strategies to reduce or offset the state's greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Pennsylvania’s Climate Change Act will also provide a means by which businesses can voluntarily track emissions, emissions reductions and offsets through a registry.  

Happening This Week

Tuesday, September 9: Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, Hearing on public transportation and dependence on foreign oil, 10 AM, 538 Dirksen
Wednesday, September 10: House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, Hearing on energy and climate research and development, 10 AM, 2175 Rayburn
House Science and Technology, Hearing on DOE's Office of Science new energy technologies, 2 PM, 2318 Rayburn
Thursday, September 11: House Agriculture Committee, Hearing on energy and farm commodity markets, 10:30 AM, 1300 Longworth
Friday, September 12: Senate Energy Summit, Two panels of speakers, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, discuss a broad range of energy issues, 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM, 50 Dirksen