Letter: Take lead in climate action

I agree with your recent editorial (“Choices offer opportunity to affect climate change,” In Our View, Nov. 15). Being a leader in green energy and decarbonization will position us for a prosperous future.

Amazon has 10,000 electric trucks on the road, and Daimler/Freightliner is building electric semis in Portland. Already, there are 9,000 electric cars and 2,500 solar roofs in Clark County.

Already, some people in Clark County use the solar panels on their roof to charge their electric car and electric lawnmower. Goodbye to oil changes, tune-ups, antifreeze, muffler repairs, fouled spark plugs, and timing belt replacements.

Furthermore, solar panels are getting cheaper. The cost of community solar in Clark County has fallen 66 percent in the last eight years, and that trend will continue.

We need a lot of new energy, and solar is the cheapest form of new energy in most of the United States. Multnomah County, Vancouver and Clark Public Utilities are facilitating the transition to clean energy. We need all jurisdictions to do so. On Nov. 28, the Clark County Council will vote on a plan. Those who object are saying, “we have no climate emergency.”