Westward Group Alternatives - Alternative energy sources are crucial: reader opinion

[donnellsanner]

As you know, the Clean Air Act was passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by the president. (It was originally enacted and then signed by President Richard Nixon in 1970, and amended in 1977 and 1990.) In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the authority, under the Clean Air Act, to regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant. Therefore, curbs on carbon dioxide emissions are, in effect, mandated.

A few weeks ago, The Charleston Daily Mail (in West Virginia) published an editorial concerning support for regulation of power-plant emissions which was surprising – given that The Daily Mail is in a major coal producing region. Also, The Houston Chronicle – a newspaper in an oil and gas state – editorially supported the regulation of carbon dioxide emissions.

Recently, in testimony before a U.S. Senate Sub-committee, four former Republican heads of the EPA, supported such regulations. In addition, on June 21, in The New York Times, former Secretary of Treasury Henry Paulson, a Republican, called for a tax on carbon dioxide emissions.

In a nationwide poll conducted in June by ABC News and The Washington Post, 70% of the respondents reported "the federal government should limit the release of greenhouse gases from existing power plants in an effort to reduce global warming."

These developments suggest that nationally the mood of citizens is changing in response to events in their lives and research reports by climate scientists worldwide.

The changes now under way may not proceed as smoothly as we would like, but increased use of alternative sources of energy and energy conservation are crucial to our economy, our health, and our survival.

[Mike90250]

And the way the power plant emissions will be reduced, is to reduce output and ration electricity. California just woke up to their new carbon gasoline tax, will be about another 60 cents per gallon, starting in january.

[russ]

Pure BS and blather - since sequestration is quite expensive and often not practical the business lobby is making the greens chase their tail - they run around in circles thinking they have a bone when it is an illision.

[SunEagle]

Not worry. Just saw the news that a volcano in Papua New Guinea erupted and the one in Iceland is probably not too far behind. With all that ash in the atmosphere it will probably drop the global temp about 1/2 degree or so.

The really sad thing is that through fear and intimidation you can make just about everyone believe in something if it scares them enough. Shutting down our fossil fuel electrical generating plants will not reduce global temperatures and improve climate change. It will result in higher electrical costs for the US people and even create shortages. But then again I am only a simple Engineer that don't know nothing about the Earth's climate history.

[sdold]

Sometimes I wonder if the whole point of it all is just feelings of guilt and wanting to "take America down a notch".

[russ]

Sometimes I wonder if the whole point of it all is just feelings of guilt and wanting to "take America down a notch".

Part of it probably is. I am fascinated by the green bunch praising the great green Europe. I have been there, travelled there, lived there - it isn't that green. The US government, along with Canada, are the best I have seen about letting the world use government research. Try finding papers and information in Europe, Japan and elsewhere - you can buy documents sometimes.

[Naptown]

There are about 8 billion people on this planet and who knows how many domestic and wild animals.
Every time you breath you emit Carbon dioxide.
Each time you pass gas which is mostly methane ( and the average human does this 14 times a day) this creates a worse greenhouse gas.
Add to this naturally occurring methane from decomposing plant life and volcanic eruptions ( albeit the ash in the atmosphere will tend to reduce insolation) and where are we.
Too many people consuming too much carbon and emiting too much green house gases.
The jury is still out on global warming AFAIAC.
there have been swings in the past.
The good news is that when enough of the poles melt down they will effectively shut down the ocean currents and we go back into an ice age.
It will take a while but the earth will survive. Humans being about 500,000 years late for a major extinction event will just have to hang on for dear life.

[russ]

Each time you pass gas which is mostly methane ( and the average human does this 14 times a day) this creates a worse greenhouse gas.

Two choices -
1) Count as it happens over a period of time
2) Just admit I am not normal and go on as usual.