7gen Bloc

We should pause to momentarily celebrate the fact that as my friend and former Executive Director of Greenpeace John Passacantando said in his blog, Our Next Economy, "Pelosi, Waxman, Markey, Hoyer...pulled off the impossible, they got a majority of the Congress to vote for the climate bill. Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth heroically told their members to call Congress to oppose it, but the Dems got it passed, Obama got a bill, now there is simply no telling what will happen in the Senate."

I believe we need to ensure that the legislation, which is strategically named the American Clean Energy and Security Act, passes the Senate without being further weakened. For that to happen, progressive business from Maine to Alaska will need to place pressure on their Senators.

The bill is incredibly complex and is filled with painful compromises as well as bold initiatives. The 1,200 page legislation would impose limits for the first time on CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gas pollution. It also would force a shift from coal and other fossil fuels to renewable and more efficient forms of energy without curbing our dependence on nuclear energy.

In this weekend's Greenpeace board meeting in San Francisco I listened patiently as my fellow board members discussed the bill's shortcomings. There are no doubt many. But the bill at least begins to provide a framework and the economic certainty upon which we can begin to build a clean energy future and participate in a global framework that regulates emissions.

photo: futureatlas.com