The following column is the opinion and analysis of the writer:
For westerners, the Sun rises reddened by smoke from burning forests. Record heat threatens our health and water supplies. A hyperactive Atlantic hurricane season is underway. Antarctic glaciers are tearing loose, threatening a disintegration of ice that could trigger a 10-foot sea level rise and set off destabilizing worldwide migrations.
According to a recent federal report released last month, climate change courts economic disaster by disrupting insurance and mortgage markets, pension funds and other financial institutions. Small wonder we stick our head in the sand when the conversation turns to climate change.
It seems hopeless. But it’s not.
Recently, I heard a presentation by Shannon Caraway, an energy professional with over 30 years’ experience in the electric power industry and member of Citizens’ Climate Lobby.
He explained that the U.S. has already begun transitioning electricity generation to more carbon-free sources. Since 2008, coal and oil use is down by half, renewables have nearly doubled (almost as much electricity as nuclear), and power from natural gas is up 80%.
The reason? Almost entirely economic — coal is expensive, natural gas has gotten cheaper, and renewables even more so. CO2 emissions from U.S. energy production has dropped 32% in 12 years with no change in the amount of electricity produced. We are more efficient and are polluting less. Proof that markets can change everything.
But to stop climate change in time, Carraway said the market needs a push. His prescription:
Decarbonize the grid. Coal is expensive and will disappear. For now, we should retain existing nuclear generation and move some generation to natural gas, which is cleaner than coal, but ultimately it must go too. Renewables, plus battery storage, are accelerating and are already cheaper than gas plants, but storage needs more innovation.
Electrify everything. Every time we choose electricity over burning fossil fuels, we leverage a decarbonized grid. Did you know the five-year cost of ownership of a Tesla Model 3 is less than a gas-powered Toyota Camry? Make your next car electric. Install solar panels. When you need a new range, water heater, or furnace, choose electric.
Maximize efficiency. We have choices now that limit fossil fuel consumption: using Zoom instead of flying, driving an electric car, insulating our homes and businesses and using efficient lighting quickly pay for themselves.
Put a price on carbon. The final nail in the coffin of fossil fuels is to make them more expensive, and in doing so, incentivize decarbonization, electrification and efficiency. A price on carbon will help get the job done more quickly.
Carbon fees are not a new idea. Over the years, they have been embraced by economists, environmentalists and conservatives as the most efficient way to curb fossil fuel use.
The challenge is to avoid the disruption that a carbon price could create, especially on the poor. How to prevent that?
First, prices should start low, with incremental annual increases. This will send a signal that prices for fossil fuels are going to rise, giving us time to adjust.
Second, send 100% of net proceeds from the fee back to American households as a monthly dividend. New research has confirmed that two-thirds of individuals will see a financial benefit after paying for higher fossil fuel prices. In the poorest households, 96% will benefit.
There is a carbon pricing bill in Congress now and it has over 80 sponsors. Reintroduced in 2021, HR 763 will push our economy to favor cleaner energy and ensure a more secure future for us all. Let Reps. Ann Kirkpatrick, Tom O’Hallaran, and Raul Grijalva, and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Martha McSally know that our way of life is under threat and that you support a carbon fee and dividend.
