Don’t repeal WA’s Climate Commitment Act; improve it - The Seattle Times

Don’t repeal WA’s Climate Commitment Act; improve it | The Seattle Times

Repealing the Climate Commitment Act is a bad idea. Making it better is a good one. Yes, the price of gas is important, but there are other environmental and economic factors to consider, including a livable planet and growing costs to the economy from burning fossil fuels. The initiative will not repeal the laws of nature: physics, chemistry or biology. However, it presents an opportunity.

For the past 10,000 years humans have lived in a “Goldilocks Zone” where Earth’s temperature variations were relatively stable. Consumption of fossil fuels is propelling us beyond that stable zone.

Consuming fuels generates greenhouse gases, warming the atmosphere and contributing to climate-influenced events including heat, floods, droughts, wildfires, sea level rise and ocean acidification. These are increasing in frequency, intensity and severity. They have a profound effect on the environment and the economy, adding costs to infrastructure, health care, business and labor, and increasing risk and liability.

Locally, air pollution from fossil fuels contributes to poor air quality and health risks such as asthma, cardiovascular disease, allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and exposure to carcinogens. They disproportionately impact young, old and poor people. Pollutants, including particulates, ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and lead, are the nasty cousins that travel with greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels and wildfires.

The past 10 years provide a glimpse into what a destabilizing atmosphere looks like. Last year was the warmest year since record-keeping began, and the past 10 years have been the warmest on record. In the past five years, we have experienced more extreme events such as heat domes, atmospheric rivers, rain bombs, king tides, fire storms and dangerous air quality.

Wildfires are among the most dramatic indicators of accelerating climate change. Wildfire seasons start earlier and last longer. Canada experienced the worst wildfire season on record in 2023. In recent years, wildfires have emerged across the planet including areas not previously at risk, such as rainforests and arctic tundra.

Climate change is altering the very nature of wildfires. When temperatures are high and humidity is low, wildfires can grow exponentially, creating their own wind and weather. When this occurs the fire takes control, traveling at the speed of the wind. Trees become fire bombs and wind becomes a flame thrower. This is what happened in Fort McMurray, Alberta; Lytton, B.C.; Paradise, Calif.; Lahaina, Hawaii; and Spokane County. As global temperatures increase, so too will these events, and no community is safe from them. By burning fossil fuels and heating the atmosphere, we are literally throwing gas on the fire.

Reducing consumption of fossil fuels is the only lever to turn down Earth’s thermostat. The CCA is a good first step. It’s time to take the next one.

The legislature has an opportunity to improve the CCA, the environment, the economy and reduce fuel prices by passing an alternative to the initiative and other measures including:

● Providing relief for agriculture, particularly small farms, that make up most of the farms in Washington. Agriculture is hit hard by climate change with few options to reduce reliance on fossil fuels;

● Linking the CCA with carbon markets in California and Quebec, creating a shared market, and likely reducing prices;

● Providing transparency regarding fuel pricing. The CCA has added to fuel costs, but so has the oil industry with huge profits and subsidies, and a history of misinformation and disinformation regarding costs and impacts associated with their products;

● Continuing to invest CCA funds for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transportation and buildings, clean air initiatives, helping offset oil price impacts — particularly for lower-income households, and funding R & D efforts to develop clean energy alternatives.