President Obama and the U.S. Senate have failed. They promised legislation to transform our energy system, create jobs and reduce pollution and today Senate Majority Leader Reid gave up.

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America, and in particular Minnesota, is far behind the rest of the world in enacting legislative initiatives to promote electric vehicles.

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Last winter, Erick began a nine-month environmental justice fellowship exchange sponsored by the Vermont Law School, China Environment Forum (Woodrow Wilson Center), and Sun Yat Sen University.  Along with the development of a personal project throughout the nine months, he will also be spending three weeks on the East Coast and three weeks in China with the 17 other fellows from the U.S. and China. Read on for the for the second of his entries.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently in the midst of reevaluating its air quality standards for six major air pollutants that have direct impacts of human and environmental health. For most of the pollutants, this means that the EPA is tightening the standards in response to improved information about the health impacts of different types of pollution. The new standards - which started coming out in fall 2008 and will all be out by 2012 - could impact whether parts of Minnesota continue  to meet (attain) the standards or fail and move into "nonattainment" status for one or more pollutants.

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The gubernatorial race in Minnesota is about to begin, and it's important that the next governor supports efforts that will make Minnesota a leader in the clean energy economy. This Sunday at 1:00PM is your chance to see where the candidates stand on comprehensive climate legislation. The Living Green Expo will feature a Gubernatorial Candidate Forum on Clean Energy, Clean Water and Minnesota's Future. Candidates confirming their attendance are Democrats Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Mark Dayton and Matt Entenza and the Independence Party's Rob Hahn and Tom Horner. Republicans Tom Emmer and Marty Seifert have been invited. Learn more about the Living Green Expo, and make sure you visit Fresh Energy's booth!

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Wondering how decision makers are doing on creating rules for a low carbon economy? In 2007, the Minnesota legislature passed the Next Generation Energy Act, including setting science-based goals for global warming pollution reductions in Minnesota. We need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the economy by at least 30 percent by 2025, and 80 percent by 2050. The state's Climate Change Advisory Group recommended actions needed to meet those reduction targets; in November, citizens will elect a new legislature and governor that will be responsible for enacting - or not enacting - the policy actions needed to unleash Minnesota's clean energy jobs potential. At the federal level, in 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an economy-wide limit on carbon pollution. Now in spring 2010, the U.S. Senate may be ready to act on a comprehensive energy and climate bill to address this urgent economic and environmental issue.

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The Geological Society of America this week updated the organization's position statement on climate change. The GSA is a scientific society, founded in 1888 and with over 22,000 members. It was founded to promote the geosciences in the service of humankind.

From the April 2010 Geological Society of America climate change position statement:

"Recent scientific investigations have strengthened the case for policy action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to unavoidable climate change. To strengthen the consensus for action, this statement from the Geological Society of America is intended to inform policymakers about improved knowledge of Earth's climate system based on advanced in climate science..."

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Because the built environment accounts for 40 percent of global carbon emissions, green building is an important part of the global warming solution. On Thursday, our very own Minnesota chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) held its first Day at the Capitol.

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Efforts are afoot in Washington, DC - particularly in the U.S. Senate - that would dramatically impair national work under the Clean Air Act to reduce global warming pollution from cars and trucks and industry. Here's what's at stake: on April 2, 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court found that greenhouse gases are air pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act.  In December 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued findings that the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming constitute a danger to public health and welfare here in the United States. Some of those human health impacts include mortality from more frequent and intense heat waves and degraded air quality that negatively impacts people with respiratory diseases and asthma. The worst of the health impacts are likely to be felt by the very young and older Americans - children and senior citizens - particularly in urban areas and among low income populations. The EPA findings are a crucial step in work to require reductions in global warming pollution.

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Despite recent rebuttals to the contrary, global warming is a real threat to Americans. Even the U.S. military agrees. In the new video "Climate Patriots: A Military Perspective on Energy, Climate Change and American National Security," recently released by the PEW Project, leaders of the U.S. Armed Forces weigh in on their experiences gearing up for and preventing climate change. The overall gist: climate change will increase terrorism, will require more military spending, and will create a need for a greater U.S. military presence abroad. So we need to be taking action now.

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