By Maribel R. Andonian, Co-Leader Citizens Climate Lobby
On Wednesday, February 7, the City of Pacific Grove unanimously (7-0) voted to endorse Carbon Fee and Dividend, national carbon pricing legislation proposed by Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) and presented to the Council by the Monterey chapter. Pacific Grove is the third local city (along with the cities of Monterey and Marina) to endorse CCL’s national carbon pricing plan.
The Mayor and Council members did for Pacific Grove what more and more cities, their mayors and city council members are doing these days to overcome the lack of leadership from the President and his administration—they took local action to protect current and future generations from the destructive effects of the increasing carbon dioxide pollution that results from burning fossil fuels.
Climate advocates rank climate change as the most important issue facing humanity today and work to find effective, immediate, solutions to this urgent problem. Climate change affects all aspects of our current lifestyle. It threatens national security, economic security, and public health to name just three immediate impacts. We must act now to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels or our children and grandchildren will inherit a vastly different—and less livable–world.
97 percent of the world’s scientists, economists both liberal and conservative, political leaders, and global business leaders have concluded that carbon pricing is the most effective way to reduce climate-warming carbon emissions.
Carbon Fee and Dividend is a market-based approach designed to drive consumer demand away from fossil fuels and spur innovation toward clean energy solutions making renewable energy as competitive, if not cheaper than, fossil fuel energy sources. This approach will reduce atmospheric temperatures, grow the economy, create jobs, and save lives.
“The unanimous support of PG’s council members for Carbon Fee and Dividend makes me proud. Its clean, practical logic gives us all hope!” said Dr. Vicki Pearse, Pacific Grove resident, and a leading expert (along with her husband, Dr. John Pearse) on marine invertebrates.
About Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL)
CCL is a nonpartisan international organization of citizen volunteers dedicated to preserving the environment through effective climate change legislation. The organization has volunteers in over 445 national and international chapters. In the U.S. volunteer climate lobbyists work with their Congressional representatives to achieve long-term climate solutions through legislative means. For more information go to https://citizensclimatelobby.org
About CCL Monterey
Citizen’s Climate Lobby Monterey (CCLM) is a local chapter of Citizen’s Climate Lobby (CCL). Inspired by Dr. Steve Webster (co-founder of the Monterey Bay Aquarium) the Monterey chapter was formed in early 2015 by two dozen men and women committed to improving the health of the planet.
We are convinced, based on overwhelming scientific evidence, that human-caused global warming is happening, primarily caused by the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is emitted into the atmosphere when we burn fossil fuels.
The best solution for global warming is to put a price on carbon (CO2) at the point of extraction according and to rebate collected fees to all American households according to CCL’s Carbon Fee and Dividend plan.
Our chapter goal is to build political will among local elected officials to support Carbon Fee and Dividend. To achieve this goal we reach out to civic leaders and organizations to raise awareness in our community of the serious nature of climate change especially as it will impact us locally.
We are confident that a well-informed and educated constituency will encourage local politicians to support carbon pricing solutions. Local support should generate political will among our elected members of Congress to enact federal solutions that support the US’s commitments to reduce carbon emissions and preserve a livable future. We are determined to obtain passage of national Carbon Fee and Dividend legislation. Municipal resolutions in support of carbon pricing will strongly encourage our Congressional representatives to acknowledge the will of their constituents by passing this critical legislation.
