With global warming emerging as the most profound environmental issue of our time, PennEnvironment is working to convince Pennsylvania’s elected officials to implement state-level solutions to cut global warming pollution. These solutions include promoting clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency, and blocking dirty energy proposals that will increase global warming pollution.

By acting now, Pennsylvania can be a leader in halting global warming pollution. And because Pennsylvania creates more global warming pollution than every state except Texas and California, we have a responsibility to take immediate action.

It’s time to act
Scientists have made it known that we don’t have much longer before global warming reaches a “tipping point” when the most catastrophic consequences become rapid and irreversible. Globally, these consequences could include a rise in sea levels of over 20 feet, which could displace tens of millions of people. Predictions for Pennsylvania include more heatrelated deaths, severe flooding and more unhealthy air days.

That’s why PennEnvironment is working to slash global warming pollution. Scientists calculate that we need to cut global warming emissions 20 percent by 2020 and 80 percent below current levels by 2050 in order to avoid the worst consequences of global warming.

Our concrete plan
Last summer, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center released “Rising to the Challenge,” a report outlining six strategies that would enable the United States to reach the first hurdle and cut its global warming pollution 20 percent by 2020. These strategies include increasing gas mileage standards for cars and trucks, and getting more of our electricity from renewable energy sources like wind power.

While the federal government has thus far taken a pass on implementing these solutions, states like New Jersey and California are taking the lead. In February, New Jersey announced that the state would implement policies necessary to cut global warming pollution 20 percent by 2020 and 80 percent below current levels by 2050. PennEnvironment is urging Gov. Ed Rendell to set the same goals for Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania at a crossroads
At the same time that PennEnvironment and other groups are pressing our politicians to address global warming, some utilities are threatening to take us three steps backward by building new coalfired power plants in Pennsylvania. A new average-sized coal plant would create roughly 7 million tons of global warming pollution every year, making it nearly impossible to hit the global warming pollution reductions called for by the scientific community.

PennEnvironment is working to convince Gov. Rendell and state officials to establish science-based global warming pollution reduction targets like New Jersey and California have done. To document the need for immediate action, PennEnvironment released the “Carbon Boom” report in April, which showed that global warming pollution levels continue to rise throughout the United States.

We’ve already had some success. Earlier this year, the Texas-based utility TXU abandoned plans to build new coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania due to widespread public opposition that PennEnvironment helped to demonstrate. But we must do more. Electric company and auto industry lobbyists will continue to push Gov. Rendell to avoid taking action on global warming. A large outpouring of public support will be critical to convince Gov. Rendell to stop new coal-fired power plants and set science-based global warming pollution reduction targets for Pennsylvania.