Tag: greenhouse gas emissions

Why Congress Needs to Act Now on Super-Pollutants

POLITIX 09/16/14 By Michael Shank As the United Nations convenes world leaders this month in New York to discuss ways to reduce global warming, the United States Senate has the opportunity to discuss the most important lever the U.S. government can pull to cool the planet and make our air […]

Fossil Fuel Divestment Works in Slowing Global Warming

HUFFINGTON POST 09/02/14 By Michael Shank and Julia Trezona Peek Once the lone province of climate scientists, the chorus warning of the costs of inaction on climate change grows larger daily, from former United States Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who warned Washington this summer of the coming climate bubble, to […]

Why Americans Are Ready to Pay More Money for Cleaner Energy

HUFFINGTON POST 06/17/14 By Michael Shank The news last week that Americans are willing to pay more for cleaner and greener energy, by almost a 2-to-1 margin, and are more willing to support a candidate that addresses the issue of climate change is a very good sign, especially as America […]

Embracing Healthier Communities Through Clean Energy

ROLL CALL 06/10/14 By Michael Shank and Rep. Lloyd Doggett When it comes to choosing the right energy to power America’s communities and economies, it’s safe to say that most Americans, if given the option, would choose an energy source much like they might choose a neighborhood in which to […]

A Constituency to Combat Climate Change

US NEWS & WORLD REPORT 09/23/13 By Michael Shank and US Congressman Paul Tonko On Friday, the Obama Administration announced greenhouse gas emission limits on new power plants. We applaud this development and appreciate the meaningful step forward it provides. Much of the conversation about this progress concerns coal-fired power […]

Cost Cutting in Congress Faces Fossil Fuel Obstructionism

HUFFINGTON POST 07/13/13 By Michael Shank Rarely does one turn to Congress for innovation. That is certainly the case with energy efficiency. Congress may be a go-to on oversight and accountability but not innovation. The Pentagon, in contrast, while not a leader in oversight and accountability (with no audit planned […]

Why Obama Must Go Big on Climate Change

NATIONAL JOURNAL 06/24/13 By Michael Shank President Barack Obama must go big on climate change this Tuesday primarily because there will hardly be a better political moment available to him. If President Obama uses his speech to go soft — with meager caps on carbon emissions, weak investments in renewable […]

US Admin and Public Supports IEA Report; Congress Remains Outlier

NATIONAL JOURNAL 06/17/13 By Michael Shank With carbon dioxide atmospheric concentration at 400 parts per million, Science Magazine reporting that the earth is warming much faster than previously thought, and a Government Accountability Office report citing the “high risks” that global warming poses to federal infrastructure and financing, it feels […]