GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
www.GP.org
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Contacts:
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624, mclarty@greens.org
Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805, starlene@greens.org
Greens call Feinstein bill to cut greenhouse gas emissions inadequate and a capitulation to energy lobbies
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green Party leaders called a bill proposed by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) to cut greenhouse gas emissions severely inadequate, and urged Congress to take far-reaching steps to curb global warming.
"Sen. Feinstein's plan, which calls for incremental cuts up to a 7.25% reduction in 2020, hardly puts a dent in emissions, and 2020 is far too late in light of recent news that global warming is advancing rapidly," said Todd Chretien, Green Party candidate who is challenging Sen. Feinstein for her seat in the U.S. Senate <http://www.todd4senate.org>.
The Feinstein bill, still in the discussion draft phase, caps greenhouse gas emissions at 100% of today's level in 2010, with a gradual reduction to 92.75% by 2020. The bill proposes a mandatory cap-and-trade plan for U.S. industries, and aims to safe-guard economic stability and competitiveness, i.e., doesn't tamper with corporate profit.
The Green Party has called for measures that require economic reorganization and which place public health above corporate profit. The party stresses the need for conservation of resources, decreased energy consumption, and conversion to clean solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, fuel cell, and biomass sources. Greens also warn that nuclear energy is not an acceptable alternative to fossil fuels, because it creates security risk and tons of radioactive waste.
Greens have also urged the U.S. to rejoin the Kyoto accord and to take the lead on measures that can realistically curb climate change. An overwhelming majority of scientists assert that the original Kyoto goal of a reduction of 5% to 1991 greenhouse gas levels is inadequate and urge a 70% reduction, a goal supported by Green Party members.
"We face two major obstacles in addressing the climate crisis," said Julia Willebrand, co-chair of the Green Party's International Committee, who has represented Greens in the Climate Crisis Coalition <http://www.climatecrisiscoalition.org/>.
"The first obstacle is the Bush Administration's refusal to join Kyoto, practice of drafting energy policy secretly and with the participation of energy corporations, and censorship of and tampering with scientific research on global warming. The second obstacle is all the Democrats and moderate Republicans who talk about cutting back greenhouse gas emissions but propose ineffective reductions out of deference to corporate lobbies."
MORE INFORMATION
Green Party of the United States
http://www.gp.org
1711 18th Street NW
Washington, DC 20009.
202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
Fax 202-319-7193
"New Global Warming Legislation Outlined by Feinstein"
March 20, 2006, YubaNet.com
http://www.yubanet.com/artman/publish/article_33120.shtml
"US Must Rejoin Kyoto, Regulate CO2, or Face More Disasters"
Green Party press release, December 1, 2005
http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2005_12_01.shtml
"The climate is crashing, and global warming is to blame. Why the crisis hit so soon--and what we can do about it"
By Jeffrey Kluger, Time, March 26, 2006
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1176980,00.html
"Rewriting The Science" (article on Bush Administration censorship of global warming research)
CBS News, March 19, 2006
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/17/60minutes/main1415985.shtml
