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propwash2008
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| Joined: | Sat Nov 8th, 2008 |
| Location: | Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 88 |
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Posted: Sat Jul 11th, 2009 10:52 pm |
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Here is Mr. Carper's reply.
July 7, 2009
Dear Mr. Smith:
Thank you for contacting my office to express your concerns about proposals for reforming the energy sector and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. I appreciate hearing your views on this very important matter.
Comprehensive energy reform is crucial to our domestic security and to our environment. Our country currently generates 70 percent of its electricity from two fossil fuels: coal and natural gas. Our heavy reliance on just these energy sources does not foster a stable market for electricity in our country. In order to address higher energy prices and fossil fuel dependence, we need to diversify our nation's energy portfolio. We must prioritize and increase the use of clean energy sources that can be produced right here in the U.S. One of the most important steps our nation can take in this regard is to encourage investments in conservation, efficiency, and renewable energy production. I believe it essential for federal and state governments to foster innovation in renewable energy technology and promote energy conservation and efficiency measures.
With respect to climate change, please allow me to take a moment to convey my thoughts. I have not always been a believer that we must do something to combat global warming. I used to think we needed more science to justify action. Moreover, I used to fear that taking action could do more harm to the economy than good. As a member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, I have attended dozens of hearings on this matter and heard from numerous experts from across the scientific, academic, and business communities.
The decade of 1998-2007 is the warmest on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization. In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of the United Nations issued a summary of its fourth assessment on climate change, concluding for the first time ever that global warming is "unequivocal" and it is "very likely" that human activity is the main driver. The Panel's conclusions were reached after a three-year review of hundreds of comprehensive studies and supercomputer simulations, and the report draws from the work of 2,500 scientists from 130 countries. Furthermore, researchers at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies have found the planet is absorbing almost one watt more of the sun's energy than it is radiating back into space as heat - a historically large imbalance that can only be attributed to human actions. NASA's scientists concluded that, "there can no longer be substantial doubt that human-made gases are the cause" of global warming.
As you know, domestic and international pressure is steadily building to curb our nation's greenhouse gas emissions. Man-made carbon emissions come from the burning of fossil fuels to power our cars, produce electricity, and manufacture consumer and industrial products. With that said, I believe Congress and the Obama Administration need to work together to craft a comprehensive climate change strategy with emissions reduction targets and well-defined means for achieving those targets. Carbon emissions regulations are so important that we need to make sure we get it right: We need to enact policies that curb the growth of carbon emissions without weighing down our economic growth.
The good news is that a free market mechanism exists that, if implemented, would recognize the true environmental, social and economic costs of these activities, while incentivizing investments in clean alternative forms of energy. I have enough faith in American technology, ingenuity and know-how, to believe we can do that while fostering - not endangering - our economic growth. In fact, if we're smart about it, we will end up creating hundreds of thousands of new "green" jobs, and we will create products and technology that we can export around the world.
Last year, Congress considered but failed to pass legislation that would have specified mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions economy-wide. I am hopeful that we can find the common ground necessary to move forward on this issue and pass legislation that makes sense for our country in the current economic downturn. As you know, in recent months the House Energy and Commerce Committee has been drafting a comprehensive climate change bill. The chief sponsors of H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act are Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Representative Edward Markey (D-MA). The legislation would require greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced by 17% compared to 2005 levels by 2020, by 42% in 2030, and by 83% in 2050. The Senate does not yet have a companion measure, however my colleagues and I have been very closely monitoring the bill's progress in the House of Representatives.
The American Clean Energy and Security Act would create jobs for Americans, reduce our country's dependence on oil, and limit the carbon pollution that contributes to climate change. H.R. 2454 would also support renewable energy, a modern electric grid, and advance standards and incentives for improving energy efficiency. These provisions would create jobs retrofitting buildings with the energy efficiency and advanced energy technology, and would save homeowners and businesses money on their utility bills. The House of Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act on June 26[size=th], by a vote of 219-212. To learn more about the provisions of the bill, please visit: http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1622&catid=155&Itemid=55.
As a senior member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I have been and will continue to be actively engaged in this process. The Committee will begin consideration of H.R. 2454 in the coming weeks. At the end of the day, we need to view the cap and trade legislation in its entirety. With a bill this large, there will be elements of it that I do not support. Ultimately I will ask myself: does it represent good public policy? Does it get us to where we need to go in terms of avoiding a tipping point for disastrous climate change?
In closing, I assure you that I will keep your views in mind as Congress develops legislation that will make our air cleaner, while at the same time improving our competitiveness in the modern global economy. Again, thank you for contacting me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future about other matters of importance to you.
With best personal regards, I am
Sincerely,
Tom Carper
United States Senator
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propwash2008
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| Joined: | Sat Nov 8th, 2008 |
| Location: | Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 88 |
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Posted: Thu Jul 2nd, 2009 12:01 am |
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I sent the following letter via email to our Senators. I know it does not read well, but I'm sure they will get the message. I know there are some here that can do a better job. I urge everyone to mail letters via snail mail and fax also. We have to stop this bill!!
I will post any answer I get from them here when I get them. They do answer. Please contct them here http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?State=DE if you do not know how to. Or this way..
Carper, Thomas R. - (D - DE)
513 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-2441
Kaufman, Edward E. - (D - DE)
383 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5042
This Cap and Trade bill has the potentual to destroy our country and the way we live.
Dear Senator.
I hope and pray that you do not pass the Cap and Trade bill. This bill will throw our country into a tail spin. It will increase the cost of energy and cause a manufacturers in our state to close or to move overseas because they will no longer afford the electric bills much less taxes. You say these companies will absorb these cost??? Wrong!! They will pass in on to their customers who will no longer be able to afford the products or services offered. We will no longer be able to afford gasoline to go to work. I drive 31 miles to my job. Last year when gas went over $4 a gallon, I almost could not afford to go to work. It hurt me financially in a big way. This will only get worse if the Cap and Trade bill is passed. Think about it.
Do you want to be a part of the down fall of our state and country?? It will happen if this bill is passed. More jobs will be lost as companies close or move overseas because they can no longer afford to operate here in the United States and Delaware. The cost of this bill will be felt by many. Please think about it.
You will come back and say this bill will provide jobs in the green energy sector. Well that will do no good if no one can afford to pay for electricity. It is a known fact that these energy sources cost more to operate not to mention it will cost billions of dollars that we are already up to our eyeballs in debt with. Our grand kids will be having to pay for our debts. I do not understand you people. It will not provide enough jobs anyway. There will still be thousands out of jobs.
Don Smith, Harrington, DE
Last edited on Thu Jul 2nd, 2009 12:05 am by propwash2008
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