Its About Jobs That Support Human Life OVEC Joins CLEAN

Hurricanes, like fierce, deadly Katrina; killer tornadoes in our countrys midsection; melting glaciers worldwide; and the recent devastating typhoon in Myanmar, are but a few signs that underscore the immediate need for action by the US government to confront global warming.

Although the United States accounts for just 4 percent of the worlds population, it produces 25 percent of the worlds greenhouse gases. As a rich, industrialized nation, we have a moral obligation to the world especially to those who can least afford to deal with climate catastrophes to reduce our gigantic carbon footprint (carbon dioxide emissions account for the greatest percentage of greenhouse gases.). And despite what the coal industry and its supporters say on their latest round of ridiculous billboards in West Virginia coal is anything by "carbon neutral."

Our government, both state and federal, has disgracefully dragged its feet for 30 years, despite the fact that signs of global warming have been with us for decades. Although 175 nations ratified the Kyoto Protocol which would reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, the US has failed to do so. And so the planet "burns" while the government fiddles.

Some of us have grown impatient with all the fiddling and posturing by politicians and fossil fuel lobbyists. OVEC refuses to take our nations inaction sitting down.

Instead OVEC, along with several other "inaugural" groups, has joined with the Civil Society Institute (a national think-tank) to develop a "Citizens Call to Action to Stop Global Warming and Climate Change." (See www.cleanenergyaction.net for more information.) Our collective goal is to create and mobilize a grassroots movement that our government officials cannot ignore.

OVEC believes that facing the challenges of global warming would not only help protect our health and well-being in West Virginia, but also lead to the creation of tens of thousands of new jobs in manufacturing, construction and sales, etc., in West Virginia and elsewhere.

The Call to Action, while calling for gradual phase out of fossil fuels and a five-year moratorium on new coal-fired power plants, includes provisions for "investments in renewable technologytargeted to those states that have historically depended on coal, providing good jobs and a clean environment for the people in those states."

Additionally, the Call to Action urges our federal government to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency to boost our countrys industrial competitiveness in a world market where renewable energy technology will be needed to meet the challenges and mitigate the impacts of global warming.

The analysis (see table), conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists, shows some tangible benefits if just 20 percent of our nations overall electricity generation came from renewable sources.

If you, as an individual, or a group you know of, is interested in supporting the "Citizens Call to Action to Stop Global Warming and Climate Change" you or your group can sign on via the website at www.cleanenergyaction.net.

For additional information call OVEC at (304) 522-0246.

Whats not to like about clean, good-paying jobs, economic development around renewable energy, consumer savings on utility bills and reduction in global warming pollution?