• In the U.S., burning coal to produce electricity results in four times the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by all other electricity production methods (EPA & DOE 2000)

• More than fifty percent of the electricity in the U.S. is generated by burning coal (EPA & DOE 2000)

• During the last 150 years of burning fossil fuels like coal, concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide have increased from 275 ppm to 387 ppm (NASA 2009)

• Heat-trapping greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, have accumulated within the atmosphere and are likely causing a warming of the earth and a change in climate patterns (NASA 2009)

• Current proposed U.S. climate legislation, which cuts CO2 emissions 4-7% below 1990 standards by 2020, does not encourage a large enough reduction to prevent drastic climate change (Henderson 2009)

• We need to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide from the current 387ppm to 350 ppm to preserve a climate similar to one in which life is adapted (Hansen 2008)

• We must phase out coal-fired power plants within the next 20-25 years to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to 350ppm (Hansen 2008)

• Reducing energy consumption, practicing energy efficiency and switching from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy sources like wind, solar and geothermal will lower our CO2 emissions (EREC & Greenpeace 2009)

• We must begin to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide levels by shutting down the oldest coal plants like Fisk and Crawford and transitioning workers to clean energy jobs (Brune 2009)

• Chicago’s Fisk and Crawford coal-fired power plants were last upgraded in the 1950‘s and do not have the modern technology necessary to satisfy Clean Air Act standards (Hawthorne 2009)

• A Harvard School of Public Health Study found the Chicago coal plants responsible for 40 premature deaths, 550 visits to the emergency room, and 2,800 asthma attacks per year (Levy 2002)

• Asthma death rates in Chicago are twice the national average (Schmitz 2008)

• Coal plants expel mercury, an element that accumulates in our ecosystem and causes brain damage and birth defects, as well as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which produce acid rain and respiratory problems (Aftandillian 2002).

• The EPA and the Illinois Attorney General are suing Midwest Generation, the owner of the two plants, for violating the Clean Air Act thousands of times (Hawthorne 2009)

• The United States can afford to invest in clean, renewable energy sources immediately by reapportioning the 49 billion dollars in annual fossil fuel subsidies to building a clean, sustainable energy infrastructure (Brune 2009)

• Over many years, savings in energy expenses will be twice as much as the initial investment in a clean energy infrastructure. (EREC & Greenpeace 2009)

• Investing in solar and wind, will create 2.8 times as many jobs as investing in coal (EREC & Greenpeace 2009)

• President Obama, the time to act is now! Establish the United States as world leader in tackling climate change this December in Copenhagen. Take swift measures to lower the concentration of carbon dioxide to 350 ppm within the next twenty years to ensure the safety of Chicagoans and the citizens of the world.

References

 

Aftandillian, D. (June 2002). Dying for Power: Clear Skies and Dirty Coal Plants. Conscious Choice. Retrieved from: http://www.lime.com/magazines? uri=consciouschoice.com/lime/2002/cc1506/note1506.html

 

Brune, M. (2008) Coming Clean: Breaking America’s Addiction to Oil and Coal. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books.

 

European Renewable Energy Council and Greenpeace. (March 2009) Energy Revolution: A Sustainable USA Energy Outlook. Retrieved from: http://www.energyblueprint.info/729.0.html

 

Hansen, J. , Sato, M, Kharecha P., Beerling D. , Berner R. , Masson-Delmotte V., Pagani M., Maureen, et. al (2008) “Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim? The Open Atmospheric Science Journal (2, 217-231)

 

Hawthorne, M. (2009, August 28). Air Pollution Lawsuit: Federal and State Lawyers Sue Midwest Generation over Illinois Power Plant Emissions. The Chicago Tribune.

 

Henderson, B. (2009, June 18). Waxman-Markey Bill not Strong Enough. Energy Bulletin. Retrieved from: http://www.energybulletin.net/node/49264.

 

Levy JI, Spengler JD, Hlinka D, Sullivan D, & Moon D. (2002). Using CALPUFF to Evaluate the Impacts of Power Plant Emissions in Illinois: Model Sensitivity and Implications. Atmosphere Environment 36 (6): 1063-1075.

 

National Association for Atmospheric Science. Global Climate Change: NASA’s Eyes on the Earth. http://climate.nasa.gov/causes/.

 

Schmitz, C. (March-April 2008). The Air Apparent? The Chicago Reporter. Retrieved from:

http://www.chicagoreporter.com/index.php/c/Web_Extras/d/The Air Apparent%3F

 

U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency . (July 2000) Carbon Dioxide Emissions from the Generation of Electric Power in the Untied States” Retrieved from:

http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/page/co2_report/co2report.html