In spite of the fact that the present administration has not expressed interest in addressing climate change, I feel more optimistic that we will address the climate crisis than I have for many years. Why is that?
Jobs and economic development are at the top of their agenda. So, I’d like to make the case that now is the time to launch a 100 percent Renewables for All campaign that will transform how we use and make energy. A campaign which will protect our planet, create jobs and a vibrant economy, and keep the U.S. great.
In the United States, 745 companies and big investors recently delivered a letter expressing full support of the climate change, fighting Paris Accord. As reported by Evan Halper in the Los Angeles Times and reprinted in The Recorder, “Corporate chief executives have grown more panicked about the effect global warming will have on business stability than about the cost of confronting it.” Halper goes on to say that, “The broader consensus is that abandoning the Paris Agreement won’t save trillions of dollars, as Trump promised, but will hurt the economy.”
The signatories included many who were previously in opposition to addressing the climate crisis, such as Exxon Mobil, DuPont, Unilever, and Monsanto. He also noted that it’s not all talk. “Monsanto is on track to be carbon neural by 2021,” Halper said.
Greenfield has been a statewide leader demonstrating the economic advantages of “going green.” Following a 2008 energy audit, Greenfield came to the conclusion that going green would be a good thing to do. We therefore became the first community to apply for and receive Green Community status in Massachusetts. Our mayor and his staff created Greenfield Light and Power so that everyone can have 100 percent renewable electricity at no additional cost.
Today, Greenfield is saving over half a million dollars on its municipal utility bills each year, and residents, who have cut their energy use and/or installed solar, are saving a similar amount. Greenfield also boasts three solar companies, several energy auditing, insulating and air sealing companies, and an award-winning program at Greenfield Community College to train people entering these fields.
Technically, we can do it. The question of “what each of us can to do” is clearer than ever before. The Solutions Project out of Stanford University points the way to a 100 percent electric future. Why electric? If we choose electricity to not only meet our lighting needs, but also, use new technologies to meet our heating and transportation needs, we can get to a zero-carbon future because we can choose to make our electricity with 100 percent renewables such as wind, solar, and hydro. Several countries in Europe are doing this and being very successful. Their efforts, combined with China’s efforts to reduce air pollution and bring power to their people have cut the cost of wind and solar five-fold in recent years.
The question is, do we have the personal and political will?
In Mass., Mass Power Forward — a statewide coalition of 150 environmental organizations including Greening Greenfield, has created a campaign called 100% Renewables for All. The campaign offers a two-page check sheet to help anyone find out what their community and fellow residents are doing. Then, depending on how many check marks you have, they suggest three actions you can take, and offer fact sheets and webinars about each potential action.
There is also a 100 percent renewables bill in the state Legislature, as well as other exciting and forward-thinking bills that will remove barriers and support continuing to move in the right direction.
Watch for workshops about the 100% Renewables for All campaign from the Franklin County Continuing Political Revolution and Climate Action Now in our area.
On April 29, the People’s Climate March in D.C. and around the country will help us deliver the message that we want the climate crisis addressed, and that the solution will build a vibrant economy and keep U.S. great. As leaders in the nation, Massachusetts’ residents can demonstrate and speak loudly that the 100% Renewables for All path works.
We are all in this together – let’s do it. Let’s take action and advocate for 100% Renewables for All, and pass legislation that supports this path to creating jobs and keeping US great, while protecting our planet.
I’d like to invite you to consider this path and share your ideas on how to keep, or make the United States great, while also protecting our planet. Protecting our planet also has many financial advantages, too numerous to list here.
Nancy Hazard is the retired director of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA), and a member of Greening Greenfield. She can be reached at nhazard@WorldSustain.net