To the editor:
I am responding to an excellent article you published by David Brooks, “Challenge to cut waste a test to entire system.”
While attempting to rise to the Conservation Law Foundation’s challenge to produce zero waste, David Brooks discovered that it was impossible to avoid all packaging and other waste we individuals produce. We should do our best to reduce, reuse, and recycle. But that is not sufficient. It’s the system that is the problem, and we need to take political action to change the system.
This same lesson applies to the production of the greenhouse gases that have produced our climate crisis. We can and should change our lightbulbs, insulate our homes, put up solar panels, and more, to reduce our own carbon footprints.
But those individual actions will not be sufficient to control global warming.
We need to change the system!
A very simple first step will be to put a price on carbon.
The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (H.R. 763), now before the House of Representatives in Washington, does just that. This bill puts a fee on fossil fuels at their source (well, mine, border). The fee starts low, and grows over time.
This will drive down carbon pollution because energy companies, leading industries, and American consumers will move toward cleaner, cheaper options. The money collected from the carbon fee is allocated in equal shares every month to the American people to spend as they see fit, thus protecting poor people from the rising costs. The government does not keep any money from the carbon fee. To protect U.S. manufacturers and jobs, imported goods will pay a border carbon adjustment, and goods exported from the United States will receive a refund.
You can take political action by contacting Representative Annie Kuster and Senators Shaheen and Hassan to ask them to support this bill.
Anne Huberman
Peterborough