| Activists
Discuss Global Warming |
By Katie Murphy
Observer Staff Writer |
| The world's climate is changing rapidly, requiring a massive
collaborative effort to stop global warming, according to
Mike Tidwell, author, filmmaker and activist. Speaking at
the Northern Virginia Climate Change Summit Nov. 9 to a crowd
of about 85 people, Tidwell sounded a call to arms for Loudoun
County residents to act as a unified group rather than focusing
on individual efforts to halt global warming. |
| Tidwell said global warming is not speculative anymore and
even politicians talk about it. He said global warming is
hard to ignore when 14 percent of the Arctic's perennial ice
has vanished since 2005; the western wild fires are the worst
ever; and the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season had a record
28 tropical and subtropical storms formed of which a record
15 became hurricanes. |
| "Global warming means Katrina-means more Katrinas,"
said Tidwell. The depletion of the Arctic is predicted to
raise the ocean 23 feet in 10 years, which would eliminate
Ocean City, Md., and would happen quickly, he said. Tidwell
also said as the icebergs melt, the area would change from
ice-reflecting light to ocean-absorbing light, making the
atmosphere warmer. |
| These changes can be seen locally, he said. There was no
accumulated rain in March, which is usually the region's wettest
month, and there were record-breaking rainfalls in June and
July, which are historically dry months, according to Tidwell. |
| He said the United States needs to undergo a massive change
in 10 years, and the country already has the technology to
make the transition. But he said the government is not using
that technology. Tidwell said the country cannot rely on businesses
"doing the right thing," and the government must
create laws that make it illegal to use fossil fuel for energy.
|
| Politicians do not care about the environment, he said,
so people must petition to let politicians know they care.
He said there are a lot of people in denial about global warming,
and he is calling for the people who recognize global warming
to take action because they are the only ones who can save
the planet. |
| Tidwell said California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed
a new law in September where California's three major utilities,
including Pacific Gas & Electric, are required to provide
20 percent of their electricity from renewable sources such
as solar, wind and geothermal energy within four years. |
| Currently Gov. Tim Kaine is drafting a 10-year energy plan
for the Commonwealth of Virginia, and he is hosting hearings
on energy topics throughout Virginia in November. Tidwell
asked Loudoun County citizens to write letters to Kaine, requesting
that he implement a similar commitment as Schwarzenegger.
He said Virginia needs a mandate that a certain percentage
of energy provided to residents come from renewable energy
resources and that the commonwealth will purchase a substantial
percentage of its energy from zero emission renewable energy
resources, like wind and solar. |
| He said the commonwealth also should adopt California's
tailpipe standards for any new car registered in Virginia. Adopting
this kind of legislation could cut up to 30 percent of tailpipe
emissions that cause global warming and health problems in
the region. |
| Tidwell said he hopes that if enough states pass these kinds
of laws, then the federal government would eventually pass
similar legislation. He said he hopes that Detroit will have
made its last non-hybrid engine and the standard car today
will be illegal by 2016. |
| Tom Whipple, representative with the Association for the
Study of Peak Oil, said these changes are also necessary because
of the limited availability of oil. He said it is believed
that of the 2 trillion barrels of conventional oil, 1 trillion
has already been used. He said that means oil has already
hit its peak. |
| He said oil would stop being used, not when it is depleted,
but when it stops being affordable. He said 85 million barrels
are used daily and 31 billion barrels are used each year,
but there are only 4 billion barrels of new oil discovered
each year. |
| The United States alone uses 21 million barrels a day, he
said. Whipple said global warming is one concern, but he was
worried that if oil becomes too expensive, people might not
have enough oil left to build what we need to live in a world
that is not dependent on oil. |
| Visit www.lccss.org. |
