WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders, on the eve of 'Step It Up' events <http://stepitup2007.org>
scheduled on April 14 to address the growing threat of climate change,
spoke out in favor of a massive conversion of the US economic system to
curb the threat of global warming in the coming decades.
Carl Romanelli, Pennsylvania Green Party, 2006 US Senate candidate:
"We
can only curb global warming by drastically reducing the amount of
greenhouse gases that we're emitting. We need to stop burning oil and
coal. The Green Party has called for the U.S. to sign on to the Kyoto
accords and to take the lead on a 70% reduction of CO2 emissions, with
public and private initiatives at every level to support the Global
Climate Treaty signed at the Earth Summit in 1992, committing
industrial nations within a time framework to reducing emissions to
1990 levels. This will require a massive investment of resources,
similar to the effort we put into World War II. But this is exactly
what we need to do to protect the earth and the future of numerous
species -- including humans."
Starlene Rankin, Lavender Green Caucus delegate to the Green Party of the United States:
"We need to develop clean and safe alternative forms of energy, such as
wind and solar power, but alternative energy sources cannot sustain our
way of life as global warming progresses and fossil fuel use is
dramatically limited. We must learn to conserve energy. We can start
with a massive investment in trains, electric trains, and various forms
of electrified mass transit, to replace car traffic and curb sprawl. We
need to consume locally grown food, instead of relying on food driven
hundreds or thousands of miles across the US in trucks and grown with
petroleum-based fertilizers and pesticides. We need to enact carbon
taxes, and to do so without placing the major burden on working people.
We can use conservation projects, as well as alternative energy
development, to generate new jobs all across the US."
Mark Dunlea, Green Party of New York State:
"Phasing out our addiction to fossil fuels is a matter of national and
global security. In the short term, our reliance on oil and the power
of oil companies have entangled us in Middle East conflicts. The
proposed Iraqi 'hydrocarbon law' will give US and UK energy firms
control over Iraq's oil resources, which will inflame regional tensions
and require indefinite military occupation of Iraq to protect corporate
investments. In future decades, we will see growing resentment from
developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America over the high
consumption of energy resources by western nations and attempts to
maintain our high standards of living. Global warming, if not
interrupted, won't just lead to climatic devastation, it will also
result in global wars over water, food, and other resources. If we want
to offset such conflicts, the US must lead the world in conserving
energy and reducing consumption, and must do so now. We can begin with
a recommitment to the Kyoto Accord and an expansion of the Kyoto
protocols."
Rebecca Rotzler, co-chair of the Green Party of the United States and Deputy Mayor of New Paltz, New York:
(Note: under Green leadership, New Paltz uses solar and purchases wind energy and is expanding 'green'
transportation)
"The
greatest obstacles we face in the climate change crisis are official
misinformation and censorship of scientific data. Democratic and
Republican politicians under the influence of corporate lobbies are
promoting nuclear power and caps on industrial carbon dioxide emissions
with a credit-trading system, but the dangers of nuclear power are
insurmountable, and market-based solutions are proving severely
inadequate. The Bush Administration has censored and tampered with
scientific reports on global warming, and has placed gag orders on
government scientists, prohibiting them from discussing climate change
publicly. President Bush's reckless and irresponsible policies on
global warming are a threat to public health and the environment, and
should be counted as impeachable 'high crimes and misdemeanors.'"
-
"Global
Warming: Bush is doing to World what he did to New Orleans; Greens call
Bush's tampering with scientific research on global warming an
impeachable offense"
Green Party press release, February 5, 2007
http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2007_02_05.shtml
-
"Smoke alarm: EU shows carbon trading is not cutting emissions"
By David Gow, The Guardian, April 3, 2007
http://environment.guardian.co.uk/climatechange/story/0,,2048918,00.html
-
"Memos Tell Officials How to Discuss Climate"
By Andrew C. Revkin, The New York Times, March 8, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/washington/08polar.html
MORE INFORMATION
Green Party of the United States
http://www.gp.org
1700 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 404
Washington, DC 20009.
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193
Green Party News Center
http://www.gp.org/newscenter.shtml
"Meltdown: Running out of time on global warming"
By Bill McKibben, The Christian Century, February 20, 2007
http://www.christiancentury.org/article.lasso?id=2978
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