Earth Chats: Bill McKibbenIf we don't slow global warming through growth control, we'll have to fight its disastrous effects.

(Continued from page 2)

PRINTDISCUSSE-MAILRSSRECOMMEND...SINGLE PAGE

FacebookMySpace Mixx Digg Reddit del.icio.us Furl Ma.gnolia SphereStumbleUponCLOSE

Bill McKibben: I think the key is to get the pricing of energy right—i.e., to inject a stiff price for carbon in at the federal and eventually the intl level. And once we've done that I think markets will be enormously helpful.


I think the govt's record in picking winner and loser technologies is spotty at best (cf, corn ethanol, maybe the worst idea of all time)

_______________________

Anonymous: Why do you think this issue wasn't given priority 10-15 years ago?

Bill McKibben: Well, I've had time to think about that, having written the first book about it for a general audience 19 years ago. I think most of the rest of the world did get to work—but here we were hampered by the very calculated obfuscation campaign carried out the by the fossil fuel industry. (Check our Ross Gelbspan's fine books documenting this campaign—The Heat Is On, and Boiling Point). I also think our particular form of journalism had trouble coping—it took objectivity to mean 'he said, she said', not a real effort to sift out the scientific consensus

_______________________

West Boylston, Mass.: Assuming that global warming is happening and that its causes are anthropogenic, shouldn't we still be measured in our response? In some cases couldn't the "cure" be worse than the disease? Just as an example, the current rush to biofuels is having a tremendous effect on the cost and availability of food, and could leave millions starving—and for all we know could have 0 effect on our total carbon dioxide emissions.

Bill McKibben: Ethanol is the worst idea of all time.

Which is why we need, I think, a very strong response in terms of a price signal built into carbon, and then we need to let markets work out what makes sense after that. I think they'd head for much more sensible solutions for the most part. But if we're going to get that price signal from Washington, we need real political organization—hence 350.org, our new campaign

_______________________

Montogmery County, Md.: I don't know what to truly believe about global warming, but most science seems to show that it's occurring, and that it is caused by humans at least partially. But the cause for suspicion is obvious: for decades, the political left has been focused on attacking consumption—people are criticized for having big houses, driving big cars, spending a lot of money, etc. People were told (and sometimes forced) to stop consuming so much and, instead, give their money to various causes. The reason was because it was "unfair" to have a big house and it was "compassionate" (somehow defined) to help others.

Now, we are told we shouldn't drive a big car, shouldn't have a big house and should consume less, but now the reason is ... global warming. In other words, the restrictions and requirements are the same that liberals have been demanding for decades, but now the reason is environmental, rather than political/social. Don't you see how that makes people a little suspicious? I'm not saying I'm a global warming denier, but you have to understand why this is a tough sell. Thanks for reading.

Bill McKibben: You know, one of my recent books, Deep Economy, asked the question: is the supersizing of American life actually making us happy? The data seems to indicate otherwise—the percentage of Americans saying they're very happy with their lives has been trending steadily downwards—mostly because people feel an ever-stronger loss of community. Which in turn is related to that American dream you describe—our economy has spent fifty years being about 'bigger houses farther apart.' I think it's probably time to start examining all of this in a new light—and i don't think it breaks down liberal/conservative. Is a farmers market liberal or conservative? I don't know

_______________________

Alexandria, Va.: Bill—oil companies and other big corporations run ads on TV saying how green and forward-thinking they have become. Is this sincere, or opportunistic? How can big industries be persuaded to become genuinely green?

Bill McKibben: The more penguins in the ad, the worse they're raping the planet.

The way to get corporations to do the right thing is to run up the price of carbon. We can't abdicate the regulation of lour economy—that's the chief duty of a democracy. And free markets can't solve this problem until govt. acts to give them some information, in the form of a cost for carbon

_______________________

Denver : I think the major key to combat climate change is to develop alternative energy sources that are carbon-neutral. The trick is that such technologies currently are not particularly economical, and lots of research still needs to be done to turn such potential solutions into real solutions. (Disclosure: I'm a scientist interested in working in this area.) However, private investment in energy technology has been relatively flat. My question is, other than simply granting more government funds for basic and applied energy research, how can we encourage/stimulate private investment in this area?

Bill McKibben: At the risk of repeating myself (and I can't type fast enough to keep up with this flood of good questions), the key is to change the relative balance of costs. 2 cent coal makes everything else look bad; send a signal that 2 cent coal is no more and all of a sudden the investment in everything else will burgeon.

_______________________

Newark, N.J.: Which presidential candidate is best positioned to address your environmental concerns and why?

Bill McKibben: I'm backing Obama. He's good on climate, he's been educated to a degree on coal, and most importantly I think he may actually hold the promise of being able to reopen dialogue with the rest of the world. We're hated everywhere, not least for our climate folly. So the best way to get people to re-evaluate us may be to elect a skinny young black guy with a funny name. People everywhere would have to say—there's more to American than I thought in my cartoon version. (A version too accurate in the last 8 years)

_______________________

PRINTE-MAILRECOMMEND...RSS

FacebookMySpace Mixx Digg Reddit del.icio.us Furl Ma.gnolia SphereStumbleUponCLOSE

SPONSORED CONTENT

• Don't Sweat the Invasion
  Why foreign plants and animals may not be that bad.
  Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow | Nov. 4, 2009
• Better Off on Big Farms
  For workers in agriculture, size matters.
  Tracie McMillan | Nov. 2, 2009
• Skunks
  From a continuing series on revolting creatures.
  Constance Casey | Oct. 12, 2009
• Search for more Green Room articles
• Subscribe to the Green Room RSS feed
• View our complete Green Room archive