maria cantwell

When I heard about the ongoing fires in eastern Canada, and the accompanying smoke that covered much of the U.S. East Coast, I was reminded of the Bob Dylan refrain from “Blowin’ in the Wind,” yet with different words: How many fires will it take ’til we know, that it’s past time to stop burning fossil fuels? Do we need the entire country to be covered in smoke before we take all necessary steps to turn the climate crisis around?

While President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act was a step in the right direction, the International Energy Administration (IEA) has been clear: “If governments are serious about the climate crisis, there can be no new investments in oil, gas, and coal.” Yet TC Energy, the company behind the Keystone Pipeline, seeks approval for a new gas project in the Pacific Northwest called the GTN Xpress. The project would increase the amount of gas coming into the region by expanding an existing pipeline.