Letter: Local officials have hand in clean air

All candidates for public office should answer these questions:

• Do you believe that climate change is serious, and why?

• Do you believe that humans are exacerbating climate change, and how?

• If elected, what policies would you support to combat climate change at the local level?

Many local elected officials tend to think climate change is a national issue and thus haven’t taken the time to learn the science or the threats.

With an infrared camera, it is easy to see that all warm objects glow in the dark. At night, the earth glows infrared. That’s how it cools down.

Certain gases, such as CO2 and methane, absorb infrared and reradiate some of it back down like fluorescence. Thus, it takes longer for the heat to escape, warming the planet.

By burning fossil fuels, we are adding billion of tons of CO2 to the atmosphere each year. We need to transition away from fossil fuels, the sooner the better.

As far as I know, no local Republican candidate for public office understands this. I favor a pollution tax, with the revenue dedicated for conservation, electric cars and renewable energy.