In response to the article “Climate misinformation focusing on local events” (Associated Press, April 22), it is clear that extreme weather events are changing how people think about climate change. According to a recent survey from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, approximately two out of three Americans (64 percent) think that global warming is affecting weather in the United States.
Interest in tackling climate change is growing. More of my friends and co-workers talk about the need to reduce human-produced greenhouse gases, which are fueling climate change and these extreme weather events.
A carbon fee and dividend is a powerful way to reduce CO2 emissions. The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act would put a fee on fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas. Fees collected from fossil fuel companies are returned to each American household in the form of a monthly “carbon cash back” payment so that everyone can afford the transition. A carbon fee is quicker to implement than regulations, which require complex bureaucratic systems. I encourage our congressional representatives from Washington and Oregon to support the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act. We don’t have time to waste.
