Detroit, Michigan—Standing in
front of a 20-foot, inflated model of the earth in downtown Detroit, Environment Michigan called for action
to reduce global warming pollution. To
prevent the worst impacts of global warming in Detroit, the best science says that we must reduce
global warming pollution by 15-20% by 2020, and by 80% by 2050.
“Global
warming is a big threat to Detroit and the
entire Great Lakes region, but we can protect
our children and future generations by using common sense solutions to substantially
reduce global warming pollution,” said Jason Barbose, Citizen Outreach Director
of Environment Michigan.
2005 was
the warmest year ever recorded, and the early effects of global warming are
evident across the U.S.
and worldwide. Left unchecked, global
warming threatens to lower Great Lakes levels,
bring heavier rainstorms, and more extreme heat waves.
In the
absence of mandatory federal limits on global warming pollution, U.S.
emissions are on the rise, increasing by 16 percent from 1990 to 2004,
according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). EIA projects that U.S. global warming pollution will
increase another 46 percent over the next 20 years. Power plants and cars and SUVs are the
largest sources of global warming pollution nationwide.
To reduce
global warming pollution, the U.S.
can use existing technology to make power plants and factories more efficient,
make cars go farther on a gallon of gasoline, and shift to cleaner
technologies, such as hybrids, biofuels, and wind and solar power. These are “win-win solutions,” according to Barbose,
because they also will cut our dependence on oil and coal, reduce air
pollution, and protect pristine places from oil drilling and mining.
In Michigan, the debate
over global warming and our energy future is heating up. The Senate is crafting a “Long-Range Energy
Plan” while the Governor is crafting her “21st Century Energy
Plan”. With draft reports due out this
summer, Environment Michigan is calling on the Senate and Governor to take
global warming pollution into account and reject the building of new coal-fired
power plants. “Designing energy plans
that fail to address global warming is not only environmentally irresponsible but
also economically irresponsible. Spending limited resources on 19th century
technologies like coal is wasteful and unwarranted,” said Barbose
Currently, Michigan sends over $18
billion to year to other states and countries to import energy. Fortunately, the solutions to global warming
would reduce Michigan’s
dependence on imported fuels and boost homegrown energy solutions like energy
efficiency and renewable energy.
Unfortunately,
oil companies – led by ExxonMobil – automakers, and most electric utilities continue
to fight common sense solutions to global warming, Barbose pointed out. For instance, ExxonMobil has given at least
$15 million since 1998 to groups working to confuse the public about the broad
scientific consensus on the causes of and solutions to global warming.
“Representatives
Conyers and Kilpatrick, and Senators Levin and Stabenow should heed the science
and support reducing global warming pollution from today’s levels within 10 years,
by 20% by 2020, and by 60-80% by 2050,” said Barbose.
