Let’s be sure to clear the air — pun intended — on President Obama’s latest call to cut carbon emissions.
One is that Texas politicians are sure to condemn the plan, given that this president is proposing it.
Second, the condemnation will come even as Texas stands to benefit greatly over the long term from what the president has put forth.
http://www.texastribune.org/2015/08/03/obama-unveils-climate-rules-texas-wide-implication/
Obama wants to cut carbon emissions by 32 percent by 2030.
As the Texas Tribune reports: “Now final, the unprecedented regulationsĀ could significantly affect Texas. As an industrial juggernaut, the Lone Star State generates more electricity and emits far more carbon than any other state. Texas also leads the nation in producing natural gas ā a fuel that policymakers could lean on while trying to shift from dirtier coal-fired energy.Ā The state also is already feeling the effects of climate change, including sea level rise, extreme heat and drought, and more frequent flooding, experts say.”
It’s the natural gas element that is going to go largely unnoticed by the chattering class in this state.
We pump a lot of natural gas out here in West Texas. Down yonder, in places such as the Golden Triangle and along the Coastal Bend, we also pump a lot of carbon into the air. The president wants to reduce those emissions — while opening the door for exploration and development of cleaner fuels.
Such as natural gas.
Obama said it plainly and correctly when announcing the new rules. We have “only one planet,” and said “there is no Plan B” for finding a new planet to settle.
So why not do what we can to take care of the planet we have?
Make no mistake, however. The critics out there aren’t going to let an ecological imperative get in the way of blasting a far-sighted initiative designed to help save Planet Earth.