Reducing carbon is essential

By now, at least 70 percent of us believe that climate change is an existential threat, and that we need to do something about it, and quick. At last, we have a national administration that believes we need to act to mitigate the effects of our changing climate — rising oceans, warming climate, raging fires, excessive drought, etc.

What can we do that will be effective in reducing the carbon in our atmosphere which is contributing, if not causing, these changes to our Earth? One of the actions we can take as a nation, is to put a price on carbon — from any source — to make it more advantageous to use cleaner energy sources, and less attractive to use carbon polluting energy (coal, gas, oil). Most economists, and a bipartisan group of national legislators, support a fee on the use of carbon, which will start out small, and will increase over time. Before jumping to the conclusion that this is another TAX — it is not. There is a bill in congress H.R. 763, which is bipartisan and revenue neutral, since it returns the carbon fees as a dividend to every American. The government will not keep any of the fees. This is one proposed solution that will not increase the cost of energy to individuals.

This bill (The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act) puts a fee on all fossil fuels and will drive down carbon pollution, because energy companies, industries, and consumers will move toward cleaner, cheaper options. To protect U.S. manufacturers and jobs, imported goods will be assessed a border carbon adjustment, and goods exported from the United States will receive a refund.

If this solution seems sensible to you, write or call your senators & congress person and let them know. If you want more details go to CitizensClimateLobby.org — there is ample information and backup regarding how this policy will work.

Ronny Kaplan

Stamford