KC Golden & Steve Reynolds in Seattle Times: "Now's the time"

1Sky board member K.C. Golden and the CEO of Puget Sound Energy Steve Reynolds have a wonderful op-ed in today’s Seattle Times called Time to Scale Up the New Energy Economy. K.C., who is the Policy Director of Climate Solutions, and Steve write about the need for a bold new policy to cap carbon emissions and create a clean energy economy. They start with the recent Environmental Protection Agency finding that climate pollution endangers public health and welfare:

The Obama administration deserves credit for moving quickly to respond to the climate challenge. But we have to do much more than just enforce existing laws like the Clean Air Act to deliver real climate solutions. We must build a new, stronger energy economy — one that increases our use of clean, renewable energy, improves energy productivity, and provides good jobs and prosperity for the long haul.

K.C. and Steve represent different interests and viewpoints, but they write that they agree on the following:

Congress and the administration need to deliver a strong national climate and energy policy framework, including: responsible, science-based limits on climate pollution; standards and incentives to increase energy conservation, renewable energy, and smart new energy technologies that improve efficiency; training and transition assistance for good jobs in a new energy economy; consumer protections to ensure that everyone can afford basic energy service; and international leadership in climate negotiations.

Those who urge delay while the economy recovers are missing the point. Accelerating the transition to cleaner energy solutions will keep energy dollars home, drive economic recovery and sustain American employment and prosperity. Now more than ever, we need the economic power of a new energy strategy.

The good news is that private companies and government agencies in our region are already demonstrating that these strategies can and do work. Energy efficiency and renewable power initiatives are creating new jobs, boosting local tax revenues and making our economy stronger. Producing energy cleanly, and using it wisely, will help us tackle global warming and position our region to be competitive. We're already seeing the benefits, from businesses cutting energy costs to small towns where renewable energy delivers fresh opportunity after decades of job losses.”

They conclude with this strong endorsement of a strong clean energy policy at the federal level:

America's workers and businesses can and will do most of the heavy lifting to build a new, stronger, clean-energy economy. But the federal government needs to stand and deliver a climate and energy policy that reduces our fossil-fuel dependence and unleashes our power to build and innovate. Now's the time.