Recently George Wilkes gave a very interesting presentation about climate change and the ways we can combat it. He especially touted the Carbon Dividend Act that is being introduced as a bi-partisan piece of legislation in Congress. Staff photo/George Wilkes
While George Wilkes was leading a friendly gathering of locals interested in learning about the Energy Innovation Carbon Dividend Act, his old high school classmate U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar took to the Senate floor to call for action on climate change.
Wilkes, who is a member of the local chapter of the Citizen’s Climate Lobby, met with about 20 people on Thursday, February 28th, at 7 p.m. at the Grand Marais City Council Chambers.
“For the first time in 10 years a major, bi-partisan climate change solutions bill has been introduced in the U.S. Congress,” said Wilkes. “It is called the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act and closely adheres to the revenue-neutral carbon pricing policy being advocated for since 2007 by the national non-partisan group.”
As for Senator Klobuchar, earlier in the day she was rallying the Senate to join Congress in addressing climate change. Klobuchar recounted that in 1986 there was a bipartisan group of senators who came together to voice concerns about the threat of climate change, including Republican Senator Dave Durenberger from Minnesota.
“The bipartisan call in that 1986 letter came in the 99th Congress, and we are now beginning the 116th,”, Klobuchar said. “And just as troubling, we have lost some of the bipartisan spirit that guided David Durenberger and those 1986 led lawmakers. Our inaction has outlasted even the Office of Technology itself.
I ask my colleagues in the spirit of bipartisanship from back in 1986, my colleague Senator Durenberger, who I hope is listening today, let us continue that spirit and let’s get some dangerous climate legislation to the floor of the U.S. Senate.”
Why should we care about climate change?
“Rich nations pollute more and people in those nations suffer less than people in poor nations who can’t easily “weather” the storms,” said Wilkes.
In the model used by Wilkes, a carbon fee would be charged at the source, be that an oil well, a mine, or from oil that is imported. In the beginning, the price would be $10 per ton and gradually increase every year. That would result in people paying 15 cents more per gallon of gas for their vehicle or about 1 cent per kilowatt hour more to use electricity.
“Assessing the fee would be pretty easy,” said Wilkes. “There are only a few thousand wells, mines of ports of entry, and the government already assess those right now.”
Other than an eight percent administration cost, every dime of the collected fees would be rerouted back to the U.S. population. The first year a family of four would get an estimated $258 back, in 20 years they would receive $396.
“Low and middle-class income earners would do a little better than wealthier people,” Wilkes said.
In fact, Citizens’ Climate Lobby projects that two-thirds of Americans will receive more in dividends that they ill pay in higher prices.
There would be a fossil fuel exemption for agriculture and for the military, said Wilkes.
Why lower fossil fuels use?
Fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, natural gas, and gasoline, when burned create CO2 (carbon dioxide). When released into the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide mix with water vapor to form a thermal blanket around the earth. This thermal blanket absorbs heat and warms the surface of the planet. Emissions from burning fossil fuels also cause significant health problems for people, plants and animals.
How the legislation would work
To start with, the bill calls for an initial fee of $15 per metric ton on the CO2 equivalents emissions of fossil fuels. Each year that would escalate by $10 per metric ton.
To discourage U.S. companies from moving overseas to avoid the higher energy costs, a penalty would be placed on their goods being imported back here.
Fees would be charged to imports from countries that don’t have a carbon fee, along with rebates for U.S. companies that export goods to those countries.
The goal of this program is to get big oil companies to become seek ways to produce clean energy, Wilkes said.
Over 125 U.S. cities and counties including Grand Marais and Duluth have passed resolutions of support for this revenue-neutral carbon pricing policy. Revenue-neutral carbon fees have also been endorsed by many prominent Republicans, added Wilkes, who urged those in attendance to contact their legislators, Congress and the U.S. Senate, and get behind the carbon fee and dividend proposal.
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