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What are we as Floridians doing to reduce our emissions? There are no emission tests here; growing up in Chicago they are mandatory. That means in Florida you can drive a car or truck that spews exhaust, has a loose fitting gas cap and a high idle. Seems we should demand more from each other and our vehicles. I wonder how much emissions we produce burning our garbage in St. Petersburg for energy? Floridians burn more garbage than any other state! How about energy plants and refineries- how do we curb their emissions or raise the state standards so that we can sleep at night? Action. We need to do many things to reduce our emissions. Just think about it, from throwing away less, using less energy and creating alternative energy sources that do not burn "fuel" to make energy. When I hear all of the rhetoric about technology saving mankind, but we are still burning "fuel" to make energy, I wonder when we will grow out of being cavemen.
Report Findings:
-The U.S. far exceeds all other nations in cumulative emissions since 1960, accounting for nearly 26 percent of all the global warming pollution emitted in that period.
-The US emitted more carbon dioxide than 171 of 184 countries combined.
-The top state in cumulative emissions (1960-2005) was Texas. If Texas were its own country, it would have ranked 6th out of 184 countries in total emissions, trailing only China, Russia, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom, and exceeding the emissions of current major emitters like Canada, India, South Korea, and Iran.
-Vermont, the state with the lowest emissions since 1960, still accounted for more total carbon dioxide emissions than 87 nations.
Here in Florida we are already seeing the effects of climate change on our community, eroding shorelines, dying coral reefs, and more intense hurricanes. If we want to reduce global warmings impacts and kick start a clean energy future we must think not as Floridians, but as citizens of the world. If we let our government get it wrong on global warming, instead of being the planets best hope, we will remain its biggest obstacle to progress, said Matt De Vlieger.[image-2][image-3]
Here is a copy and a link of the Greenpeace report. Hopefully they have some solutions. America's Share of the Climate Crisis: A State-By-State Carbon Footprint
On Wednesday, May 27, 2009 Greenpeace released a new report that aims to shed light on the United States responsibility for taking the lead to solve global warming as a result of its outsized role in causing the problem in the first place. Using data from the Carbon Analysis Indicators Tool maintained by the World Resources Institute, the analysis examines state-by-state carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion from 1960-2005 and compares those emissions to 184 other countries of the world.
In Florida, 48% of carbon dioxide emissions come from the power sector, 43% from transportation, and the rest from industrial, residential and commercial operations (Spreadsheet). The highest emissions come from petroleum, which accounts for 156 million tons of CO2 annually, or 59% of fossil fuel emissions (Spreadsheet). One of the largest emitters of carbon dioxide in the state is Big Bend in Tampa, Florida (Stats).
In December, the international community will gather in Copenhagen to finalize a plan to tackle the climate crisis. Unless the U.S., historically the worlds largest polluter, sets high enough emissions reductions targets, we run the risk of being all but singlehandedly responsible for fueling catastrophic global warming. Such shortsighted policy would likely set the international norm. In other words, other countries waiting to see what the U.S. brings to the table would set similarly low targets. Inadequate reductions globally would all but assure climate catastrophe.
To contact our local Greenpeace office or for any questions about this report turn to:
Matthew De Vlieger
Florida Field Organizer,
Greenpeace USA
o 813.443.5165
c 954.536.7461
[email protected]