Since President Barack Obama’s veto of the legislation approving construction of the Keystone XL pipeline that Congress passed, there has been limited coverage and discussion by the Bangor Daily News and in the opinion pages.
There was a Feb. 25 piece by Michael Bloomberg suggesting Obama use the pipeline as leverage to have Canada commit to a carbon emissions reduction plan similar to the agreement between China and the U.S. Jim Fossel provided the only other commentary in his Red207 blog. He referred to Obama’s veto as “empty rhetoric” regarding his promises of job creation. Maine Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin agreed stating, “Our families will have more money, have more jobs and enjoy more freedom.” Maine’s other Republican in Congress, Sen. Susan Collins, also supports the legislation, while Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree and independent Sen. Angus King oppose the bill.
Obama has said, “Allowing the Keystone pipeline to be built requires a finding that doing so would be in our nation’s interest. And our national interest will be served only if this project does not significantly exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution.”
Though the State Department has yet to make its final ruling on the proposed pipeline, the Environmental Protection Agency’s assessment claimed, “The development of oil sands crude represents a significant increase in greenhouse gas emissions.”
Therefore, the pipeline fails Obama’s climate test and should be rejected on this premise alone. The increased projected carbon emissions from the pipeline would be “game over” for the climate. We have a moral obligation to future generations to keep this source of fossilized carbon in the ground.
As for jobs, reports estimate the pipeline would create 42,000 temporary construction jobs and just a limited number of permanent jobs — likely more would be needed for the cleanup of environmental catastrophes caused by the extraction of tar sands, pipeline spills and aquifer contamination.
If Congress is serious about supporting job-creating legislation, then it should consider the Carbon Fee and Dividend proposal by former Secretary of State George Shultz and developed by Citizens’ Climate Lobby. Regional Economic Models Inc. (REMI), an economic forecasting organization, has conducted a study on this proposal and found that after 10 years, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 33 percent, and the proposal could create 2.1 million jobs.
The plan achieves carbon reductions and adds millions of jobs by placing a steadily rising fee per ton of carbon dioxide at the site of extraction or import. The fossil fuel companies have had the luxury of dumping their pollutants into our atmosphere for free while every other industry has regulations on toxic waste released into our water and soils. The fee, including externalities, reflects the true price of carbon.
Renewable energy technologies become more price-competitive as fossil fuels are not propped up by subsidies. This would stimulate development of renewables thus reducing additional greenhouse gas emissions.
In the proposal, a border adjustment tariff is placed on imports from countries without an equivalent carbon-pricing system. That maintains a fair playing field for American businesses, and it creates pressure and incentivizes other countries, such as Canada and China, to adopt a similar carbon fee and dividend policy, achieving Bloomberg’s idea of getting Canada on board while leaving the tar sands in the ground.
The policy is revenue-neutral, meaning the government doesn’t take in extra revenue from the fee on carbon. The revenue is returned to the American population in the form of a monthly dividend. A regularly distributed sizable check will generate an economic stimulus creating the reported 2.1 million jobs — a far better number than the 42,000 temporary jobs the Keystone XL bill supported by Poliquin and Collins would create.
The Carbon Fee and Dividend proposal is a market-based approach all conservatives can support. Poliquin could have a stronger case for giving Americans more money, more jobs and more freedom by supporting this proposal rather than the Keystone bill.
Tim Godaire of Bangor is a graduate student in the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine and is a member of the Bangor chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby.