It’s safe to say that the severity of the climate change problem is often overwhelming … and, to be honest, downright depressing.
The solution is not only economic, but social, political, historical and global in scope; a multi-layered quandary that includes a vast amount of stakeholders, all with their own special interests, pulling and pushing to be heard. And while we struggle to forge solutions, the environment – and species that rely on its health for their survival – are facing serious ramifications.
Scientists predict a continuation of our status quo emission rates will cause more than a third of the Earth’s animal and plant species to face extinction by 2050 — and up to 70 percent by the end of the century – thanks to climate change.
Depressed yet? Plant your peepers on this: Human rights groups including Oxfam and Environmental Justice Foundation report that 10% of the global population is at risk of forced displacement due to climate change, that’s almost 150 million climate refugees by 2050.
The mere scope of the climate problem has everyone struggling to wrap their heads around a realistic solution, and even more importantly, a timely one. The failure of COP15 has left climate change activists with a bleak sense of hope. Since the breakdown of these negotiations, the environmental community has been blatantly depressed, unsure of the next strategic move.
The best way to begin to address an overwhelming problem is to identify the main source and attack with fervor. In the case of global warming, the largest carbon emitter is coal, the dirtiest of the fossil fuels. Coal accounts for almost 40% of our nation’s carbon dioxide pollution and, according to NASA’s leading climatologist, Jim Hansen, “80% of the solution to the global warming crisis.” (“Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim?” Open Atmospheric Science Journal (2008)). If that’s not enough, here are some more fun facts on coal:
- Health: Each year 21,000 hospitalizations, 38,000 heart attacks and 24,000 deaths are caused by pollution from coal plants.
- Waste: Produces 131 million tons of waste per year.
- Habitat degradation: EIS in 2005 and 2007 reported that 2,000 miles of streams and 1.4 million acres of land will be destroyed by 2020 due to mountaintop removal coal mining.
Yes, coal does provide 50% of our electricity generation, but it is short sided and uninformed to say that we can’t transition to alternative sources. The coal industry says we will “freeze in the dark” if we try to get rid of coal, but this just isn’t true, and we can prove it: California.
From 1973 to 2005, the sunny state leveled off their electricity consumption while the rest of the nation increased by 50% (Deconstructing the Rosenfeld Curve, Precourt University for Energy Efficiency, 2008).
How? State mandated energy efficiency standards, of course. The state was able to make a drastic difference in energy consumption by implementing low-flow shower heads, creating tighter insulation regulations and working to develop energy-efficient windows, just to name a few.
It was also a cheaper energy alternative. Contrary to what the industry says, coal is also not the cheapest way to provide power. Developing alternative power sources such as wind, solar and geothermal are becoming less expensive than building new coal plants. In fact, per kilowatt-hour compared to coal, wind power costs 3 cents less and solar costs 5.4 cents less.
Coal is dirty, unhealthy, damages our water supply, destroys the environment and is the primary cause of global warming. That’s the bottom line.
So let’s grab the problem by the horns and send a clear message: zero coal. If the environmental community could make just this ask we could strike the heart of our domestic emissions. This would drastically alter our path as a nation; spurring innovation and creating new energy sectors for generations to come.
Tags: california, climate change, climate policy, climate refugees, coal, species extinction, u.s. policy
