The drama of exploding oil trains hit closer to home on June 3 when rail cars carrying crude oil derailed near the town of Mosier, Oregon, along the Columbia River. A heat wave in early June is another sign that our addiction to fossil fuels is an ongoing disaster. How can we best reduce our dependence on fossil fuels? Individual actions are important, but the quiet force of economics is also powerful. In November, I am voting yes on Initiative 732 to promote clean energy, and make our tax system fairer and more sustainable. Whether you call it Global Weirding or Global Climate Change, we are heading in the wrong direction. The continuing explosions of “bomb trains” carrying crude oil are a wake-up call that we must transition off fossil fuels.
Lots and lots of smart folks — from (Nobel Prize-winning physicist) Steven Chu to dozens of economists and civic leaders around Washington state agree that a price on carbon is key and that a revenue-neutral carbon tax is the best way to get there.
I am with them. Please join me in voting yes on Initiative 732 this November.
Janet Alderton
Deer Harbor, Orcas Island
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