In order to ensure healthy air and a stable climate for our children and grandchildren, we must make responsible decisions about our energy sources. Existing technologies and forward-thinking policies offer practical and affordable solutions to reduce our dependence on the fossil fuels that currently dominate America’s electricity system. This system threatens the health of our communities by polluting the air and contributing to global warming. If left unchecked, heat-trapping emissions, such as carbon dioxide (CO2), are expected to cause irreversible damage to communities throughout the United States and around the world.
Practical solutions do exist. For example, more than 40 percent of U.S. states have adopted a renewable electricity standard—a policy that requires electricity suppliers to gradually increase their use of renewable energy such as wind, solar, geothermal, and bioenergy. These states are demonstrating that renewable standards are an affordable solution to reduce CO2 and other unhealthy air emissions, while alleviating the harmful impact that fossil fuel extraction, transport, and use have on land and water resources.
