This situation is not unlike with the whole tobacco fiasco -- Tobacco companies wanted to keep knowledge of how tobacco causes cancer away from the public. They paid their own scientists to refute those claims and paid off the politicians.
we're seeing the same thing here from oil, auto and other related industries who want to keep their billions of dollars in profit. They have an interest in the status quo, and don't give a heck about the rest of us in society or the environment.
It's reaching a critical point -- ice is melting, animals are becoming extinct, people are being killed or injured by more frequent hurricanes, tornadoes and severe weather, we've had higher and higher average temperatures during all months.
These powerful interest groups have managed to recruit climate change deniers -- My senators here in Oklahoma, Jim Inhofe and James Lankford, are both climate change deniers. Probably as a result of Oklahoma's reliance on natural gas. This is similar in other states reliant on gas revenue , such as Alaska and Texas. States that tend Conservative.
I think it's horrible that Conservatives are being associated with anti-science and are opposing these well known scientific facts.
If we had the political will and invested the money, we would be able to easily replace our energy grid with 100% renewable energy by 2030. It would cost quite a bit of money, but the cost of renewable energy -- wind and solar, for example -- are quickly approaching parity with traditional sources of energy (Coal, natural gas, etc.) Several european countries have talked about moving towards banning petrol cars entirely.
the United States is unique in it's vast potential for renewable energy. Long costs for wind power and deserts for solar power, etc.
*Citing stats from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the report says the U.S. has the technical potential to meet its current electricity needs more than 100 times over with solar energy and more than 10 times over with wind energy. In addition, the report says the U.S. also has massive potential to save energy, citing estimates from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy that the country can reduce its overall energy use by 40% to 60% below current levels by mid-century, even as the economy continues to grow.
The report adds that economists predict the U.S. can build a 100% renewable energy system at costs comparable to or less than what the country would have to spend to continue its reliance on dirty energy. It also says the International Energy Agency estimates that limiting global warming to 2° C would require an additional investment of about 1% of global GDP per year. That investment would yield savings of more than $115 trillion on fuel by 2050 – a net savings of more than $70 trillion
*http://solarindustrymag.com/could-renewable-energy-supply-100-of-u-s-power
http://thesolutionsproject.org
How do you feel about global warming? How should we combat global warming? What is the best policies can we put in place to reach the goal of 100% renewable energy? Do you accept global warming? How would we finance such a movement?
