Federal inaction and the Bush administration's undermining of clean air, water and lands protections are forcing State governments to set their own environmental standards and implement their own solutions. For example, California and other states are adopting Clean Car legislation that requires the reduction of auto emissions that contribute to global warming.
America is becoming an increasingly polarized nation, but environmental issues are creating new alliances among people who agree on little else: ranchers working with conservationists to fight oil drilling, evangelicals and environmentalists uniting in their call to protect wetlands, hunters and anglers partnering to fight for clean water, conservatives worried about national security working with conservationists to decrease our dependence on oil.
The Bush administration and Republican Congressional leaders have made drilling in the Arctic one of their top priorities. But a key coalition of moderate Republicans and Democrats bravely fought back to protect this sacred place and keep the drilling at bay.
Congressional leaders embarrassed themselves by allocating nearly half a billion dollars for two "Bridges to Nowhere" in Alaska while one in four bridges nationally - not to mention several destroyed by Hurricane Katrina - awaited money for repairs. After strong public outrage, Congress backed off the bridges, but still gave Alaska money to spend as it sees fit.
In addition to being a human and economic tragedy, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita were man-mad and natural disasters of unprecedented proportions. It was a wake up call to start protecting vital wetlands that help absorb waters that protect communities from floods, to make our cities safer and more sustainable and to address the role that humans play in global warming which leads to more violent and extreme weather.
High gas prices and concerns about global warming helped catapult gas-electric hybrid technology from the margins to the mainstream. Toyota's worldwide hybrid sales passed the half a million mark in 2005. This was also first year to see the first hybrid SUVs hit the market. Some businesses are also offering incentives for their employees to buy hybrids. In fact, New York City's Taxi and Limousine Commission recently approved the use of hybrid vehicles for its entire NYC fleet.
All over America, cities, counties and states are launching an exciting grassroots movement to help solve global warming. Frustrated by stalling on the federal level, mayors, county commissioners and governors are leading the way toward a safer and more secure future. So far, 182 mayors nationwide have pledged to reduce global warming carbon dioxide pollution in their cities to 7% below 1990 levels by 2012.
Even before Hurricanes Katrina and Rita sent prices at the gas pump to record highs above $3 a gallon, Americans were already feeling the sting of soaring prices. Meanwhile, oil companies are raking in record profits -- ExxonMobile's profit for one quarter alone was $10 billion!
It's been a busy year for House Resources Chairman Richard Pombo (R-CA). He wants to rewrite the 30-year-old Endangered Species Act to eliminate critical habitat designations. He's leading the charge to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to destructive oil drilling and wants to end a 25-year-old moratorium on oil and gas drilling off our coasts. He's worked hard to overturn a ban on ozone-destroying pesticides and recently drafted a bill in which he proposed selling 15 national parks to generate revenue.
