Too Cheap To Fix It

We wanted to save the planet but we couldn’t make it pencil out: I hope this is not the message we will be giving to our children and grandchildren.

As I listen to politicians and business interests, I hear them resist any extra costs whatsoever to transition to clean, sustainable energy or to other efforts that could sequester carbon using soils or forests. For them, an acceptable solution needs to generate revenue in the short term or at least be revenue neutral.

The time is past when economic interests are more important than ecological realities.  I don’t know anyone who thinks that fires, droughts, hurricanes and floods are going to pencil out. The latest reports warn that we have 12 years to prevent irreversible climate chaos.

We must take bold action now. This will require substantial financial investments that will pay off in the long term. Think WWII mobilization effort or the proposed Green New Deal.  

Ensuring a livable planet for generations to come is worth some sacrifice now. Otherwise our children will be living in a future that will never pencil out. 

Carolyn Partridge

Eugene