Here are some pictures that Tom Hastings took at the Climate Action Day, Oct 24, at Manhattan Beach.  This world-wide event was organized by the 350 Organization (http://www.350.org).  The purpose was to raise awareness of the goal to reduce CO₂ in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million in order for the climate to be sustainable.  CO₂ is currently at 390 ppm and rising 2 ppm each year. 

The CGS table manned by Becky Tan and Tom Hastings on Climate Action Day, Saturday, October 24, at Manhattan Beach.  They got over twenty attendees to fill out postcards and address them to Senators Boxer and Feinstein and to President Obama:

There was a long line showing where high tide will be on Manhattan Beach if we don't bring CO₂ down to 350 parts per million:

Thomas Friedman said of the Waxman-Markey Bill: "It stinks. It's a mess... Now let's get it passed in the Senate and make it law."

So why does he want this stinky, messy bill to become law?

In the New York Times, Friedman explained that this bill, for all its imperfections, is "the first comprehensive attempt by America to mitigate climate change by putting a price on carbon emissions. Rejecting this bill would have been read in the world as America voting against the reality and urgency of climate change and would have undermined clean energy initiatives everywhere."

To muster enough support for the bill to be passed through the House, the bill had to include provisions that would weaken it. Still, it creates incentives for businesses to cut costs by going green: "weaving carbon emissions into every business decision will drive innovation and deployment of clean technologies to a whole new level and make energy efficiency much more affordable." Through the bill, new buildings and appliances will be more energy efficient, forests will be conserved, and mindsets will change- factoring in pollution as a production cost will change the way we make things.

Let's heed Friedman's final words of wisdom: "Now that the bill is heading for the Senate... we must, ideally, try to improve it, but, at a minimum, guard against diluting it any further."

* ACT NOW in support of strengthened environmental protection policy!

To read the full article, click here

For more information on the legislation, click here

To learn more about climate change, click here

On June 26, 2009, the House succeeded in passing the Waxman-Markey Bill, which takes important steps towards addressing climate change. The bill narrowly passed with 219 ayes and 212 noes: we commend all the representatives who voted in favor of this key legislation, and urge the Senate to pass the bill before December 2009, when countries will be meeting in Copenhagen to discuss an international environmental agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol.

The Congressional Budget Analysis Office found that 1.7 million jobs will be created with the implementation of the legislation through the growth of clean energy jobs. Low income families will receive a $40 benefit from using more solar and wind energy in place of foreign oil. U.S. dependence on foreign oil will be cut, along with the hazardous effects of pollution- all for the cost of about one postage stamp a day for every family.

There are concerns about compromises made along the way to secure support for the bill. For instance, the Agriculture Committee has secured rights over the Environmental Protection Agency to oversee implementation among farmers, and pollution permits have been given for free to coal-burning utilities, oil refineries, automakers, and manufacturers struggling to compete with overseas production.

By imposing a higher price on carbon emissions, incentives are created to invest in green technology within the U.S. The bill is not strong enough to sufficiently thwart climate change, but it is an important step in the right direction, and a symbol of changing mindsets and modes of development. If even the current bill could not be passed, hopes for stronger measures tomorrow would be dampened significantly.

* ACT NOW in support of strengthened environmental protection policy!

To watch Obama speak on the passage of the bill, click here

For more information on the legislation, click here

To learn more about climate change, click here