Courtesy of Mark Kresowik, Iowa Organizer, Midwest Clean Energy Campaign and National Coal Campaign along with Mike Carberry of I-Renew and many others who are fighting global warming and for sustainable renewable energy.
This is a historic day in the battle against global warming in Iowa and the Midwest. Today six Midwest Governors and the Premier of Manitoba, including Iowa Governor Chet Culver, signed a regional greenhouse gas reduction accord and agreed to lower global warming pollution 60% to 80% by the year 2050.
"I am very pleased Democratic and Republican Midwest Governors, along with Premier Doer of Manitoba, were able to come together to support such a worthy goal," said Governor Culver. "The threat of global warming is real and it is our responsibility to take steps to reduce greenhouse gasses… Iowa's leadership in renewable energy, combined with our strong manufacturing base, makes us perfectly situated to become the renewable energy capital of the nation."
Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club, said:
"Today the Heartland went from being a part of the country at the center of America's global warming problem to a region eagerly seeking to take the kind of bold, visionary action that is needed to combat the problem… It is particularly important that these Midwestern governors move to take aggressive action on this issue, as the Midwest is the epicenter of the Coal Rush. Though we have been successful in slowing the Coal Rush, it could yet derail all efforts to reduce our emissions for decades to come. Kansas' decision to reject a future wedded to dirty coal sets a strong precedent that we very much hope will be followed by other states in the region. The region stands to gain over 289,000 new manufacturing jobs if it makes a real commitment to renewable energy—a far better deal for the environment and the economy than anything on offer from Big Coal."
It is now our turn to take action - as citizens of Iowa and advocates for a new clean energy economy that reduces global warming pollution, lowers energy costs through energy efficiency, and bolsters job creation through renewable energy. We need you to do one or more of these things at the local, state, and national level to support Governor Culver and the Sierra Club's efforts in Iowa.
1) Call Governor Culver at 515-281-5211 to thank him for his support of this accord and ask him to prevent the construction of two new dirty coal burning power plants in Waterloo and Marshalltown. If built those two plants would eliminate all of the good work that Governor Culver is trying to accomplish by emitting as much carbon dioxide every year as the entire passenger vehicle fleet of the State of Iowa, more than 1.6 million cars. Now is the perfect time to call!
2) Join with your community members in taking action to protect the environment and create a clean legacy for future generations:
Global Warming Campaign Special Meeting - Cool Cities/Counties Next Steps
Monday, December 3rd, 7:00 PM
Iowa City Public Library Meeting Room B, Iowa City
For more information on this and other activities contact Mike Carberry at michaelcarberry@hotmail.com or Jim Baker at bakerjim@avalon.net
3) On January 3rd Iowa will host the nation's first caucus and play a pivotal role in selecting the next President of the United States. There are great ways to support a clean energy economy through this process and you can start now by contacting Andrew Snow of the Sierra Club team in Iowa at andrew.snow@sierraclub.org or 515-331-0260.
4) This Saturday, November 17th, Iowans will be joining other advocates from across the region for a rally in St. Louis, Missouri to celebrate the Midwest Governors accord and call on Peabody Coal, the largest coal company in the world, to take action to fight global warming and stop supporting new coal burning power plants. Contact Juliana Williams of the Sierra Student Coalition at Juliana.williams@sierraclub.org for more information about free transportation and the event.
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