70 Green Groups Urge Obama to Act on Climate Change
On Monday, a broad coalition of over 70 environmental, civil, health and labor groups signed and sent an open letter to President Obama, demanding he take action on climate change during his second term in office.
They referenced his September 7, 2012, speech in Chicago, when on the campaign trail, when Obama stated, "climate change is not a hoax. More drought and floods and hurricanes are not a joke. They're a threat to our children's future. And we can do something about it."
Discussing the letter, Frances Beinecke, President of the Natural Resources Defense Council, wrote: "When I first started working on climate change a decade ago, we spoke in terms of distant forecasts and long-range impacts. Now we simply look out the window to see what climate change can do to our communities ... We no longer have the luxury of time. We must act now to prevent more Americans from feeling the pain of los jobs, destroyed homes and shuttered businesses."
The groups demanded that President Obama take three steps to curb carbon pollution:
1. Raise his voice. Elevate the issue of climate change and solutions in the public discourse by connecting the dots between carbon pollution and extreme weather;
2. Use his executive authority, in particular, by using the EPA's existing authority under the Clean Air Act to reduce emissions from power plants;
3. Reject dirty fossil fuels, especially when climate science tells us that 80% of the existing fossil fuels need to be kept in the ground.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/01/10-0
= new reply since forum marked as read
and the NRA
