Surveys continually show that the American population is becoming increasingly convinced of and concerned about the changing climate and global warming. The principal cause being the increase of CO2 in the atmosphere along with methane. The two primary sources comprising about 80% of these emissions are from the production of electricity from coal and natural gas and burning oil in the…
Since the election on November 8, I have been asked countless times “what is the Sierra Club going to do to protect our environment?” And this: “What can I do to prevent our natural resources and climate to be devastated by actions of the Trump Administration?” The simple answer is to RESIST. We simply cannot allow this new reality become acceptable.…
Here in the Midwest Great Lakes states, our congressional delegations have successfully fought for and created the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), a $300-million-per-year program that began in 2010 and was made official last year by Congress. It is making a HUGE difference in restoring the health of the Great Lakes and the communities along their shores. One local site is…
When the new President (I can’t even mention his name) took office in January, it wasn’t the beginning of the challenge to climate science and action in DC. If it weren’t actually happening, I would not be able to imagine that well educated leaders in a free society would actually not only deny that the climate is changing and humans…
If you have no idea what CRA is don’t feel bad. Until very recently I’d never heard of it either. Since the election I’ve been hearing many of my Sierra Club associates talking about how the Republicans are going to use the CRA to reverse much of what the Obama Administration put in place. CRA stands for Congressional Review Act. It is described…
We discovered on November 8th that history does not progress in a straight line. The arc of progress, the road of history, twists and turns and sometimes bends back on itself…just like in our own lives. I’ve paddled a few wilderness creeks like this. Back and forth never being sure where you’re going and if or when this frustrating endeavor will end.…
As a follow up to yesterday‘s piece, I am copying Automotive News’ editorial from last week. This article points out that 2016 was the year of the EV and asks: “What changed? “It’s a move that is driven primarily by the customer,” Speth told us. “Customers see this type of vehicle as cool and sexy, especially younger customers” As a former…
The onslaught of fully electric cars that are competitively priced, get over 200 miles on a full charge and drive better and have more features than their ICE (internal combustion engine) counterparts continues to gain steam (another outdated form of power). You probably recall that I own and drive a Chevy Volt and Debbie has a Tesla S. And now, the…
The end of the summer and fall were extremely busy for me. Thus, I failed to publish a report of the September Annual Sierra Club meeting. Therefore, I am going to do a twofer now and provide an overview of both the September and November meetings. This is not the report that I had anticipated prior to November 8th. We…
As I have been predicting, there are going to be developments that we don’t see coming and will turn conventional wisdom on its head. Well, here it comes!!! Buckle up. Change is going to happen faster and faster. Here‘s the key point: ” a then-audacious campaign to make solar power as cheap as electricity from coal. “Frank van Mierlo holds his…