Contents
Introduction
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA)
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Carbon Offsets for Long Flights
Introduction
Electrify Everything Everywhere All At Once
Thanks to global foot dragging by all levels of humanity, the latest United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report gives us seven years* to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 45% from 2010 levels to have even a chance to keep global warming from really getting out of hand. The fact is that we’re in a situation where we must get rid of fossil fuels fast! Serious actions must therefore be taken by individuals, government, and the business community.
What can we do as individuals to bring this enormous change about?
- Electrify everything you have control over, e.g.: your transportation and your living space.
- Read this guide to learn how to minimize your carbon emissions and how to maximize your rebates and tax breaks for your electrification efforts.
- Apply carbon offsets to your long distance flights.
- Attend City Council meetings and tell your leaders that the time for Climate Action is now.
- Sign up here for climate alerts on city council meetings in your city.
- Vote for candidates and issues that are in line with the IPCC’s goals.
- Sign up here for climate alerts and recommendations for local, state and national elections.
- Do not hesitate to talk to your family, friends and neighbors about the reasons we need to electrify now.
If we had all started the process of moving away from fossil fuels 40 years ago, we wouldn’t be in the jam we’re in now. But this is not the time to cry over spilled milk; it is time for action, it is time to electrify everything, everywhere, all at once.
*Other techniques of reducing our GHG footprints and removing GHGs from the atmosphere will not be ready to have much impact on the climate crisis by 2030; yet research on nuclear fusion, fuel cells (hydrogen), and direct air capture also need to be intensified. Tree planting and forest restoration must be continued, too, even though their benefits will also not be felt by 2030.
Carbon Offsets for Long Flights
Calculate that a non-stop round trip jet flight in economy class across the Atlantic or Pacific causes about 3 or more tons of CO2 per passenger to be emitted into the atmosphere, and stop-overs increase emissions. This probably ruins our reasonable carbon footprint (use this calculator), and we must offset it by paying for the social cost our trip has created. The social cost of CO2 emissions has risen steadily over the years since the Trump administration set it at a ridiculous, fossil fuel industry friendly $7 per ton, and now it looks like we’re approaching $200. This increase has a profound effect on carbon offsets since under the Biden administration’s current interim cost of $51 per ton, a round trip flight from the West Coast to Paris emits 3.0 tons of CO2 or $153. Figuring the social cost to be $200 per ton, the cost of the carbon offset rises to $600 per passenger.
We suggest that you offset your jet travels effectively by electrifying your life. As a start, buy a heat pump water heater that, including installation and after IRA 2022 rebates and tax credits, can be bought for around $600 net. For further guidance on electrification and possible rebates and tax breaks, consult the excellent “Go electric” guide published by Rewiring America.
ICCP Reports
Created in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the objective of the IPCC is to provide governments at all levels with scientific information that they can use to develop climate policies. IPCC reports are also a key input into international climate change negotiations. The IPCC is an organization of governments that are members of the United Nations or WMO. The IPCC currently has 195 members. Thousands of people from all over the world contribute to the work of the IPCC. For the assessment reports, experts volunteer their time as IPCC authors to assess the thousands of scientific papers published each year to provide a comprehensive summary of what is known about the drivers of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and how adaptation and mitigation can reduce those risks. An open and transparent review by experts and governments around the world is an essential part of the IPCC process, to ensure an objective and complete assessment and to reflect a diverse range of views and expertise. Through its assessments, the IPCC identifies the strength of scientific agreement in different areas and indicates where further research is needed. The IPCC does not conduct its own research.
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA)
The Sierra Club helps members to take advantage of the IRA on this page.