GLOBAL WARMINGImpacts, Solutions, Actions

• Why Should We Care?

• What Can We Do About It?

• Do My Actions Really Matter?

• Solutions and Silver Linings

Why Audubon?Photo: Bob Martinka

Why Audubon?

Global warming poses the greatest threat to

biological diversity in human history.

Photo: Bob Martinka

What’s At Risk?

Everything

Increased Storm Frequency and Intensity

IPCC Fourth Assessment Key FindingsIPCC Fourth Assessment Key Findings

Sea Level Rise and Coastal Flooding

IPCC Fourth Assessment Key FindingsIPCC Fourth Assessment Key Findings

Increasing Risk of Increasing Risk of Catastrophic Catastrophic FiresFires

More Invasive Species

Increased Drought

The Economic Toll

Global Warming impacts will cost 20 times more than reducing our emissions now.*

* 2007 Report by British Treasury Secretary Nicholas Stern

Economic Toll

• 100s of millions of environmental refugees in this century*

• Increase in air pollution• Spread of tropical diseases• Water shortages and contamination

*United Nations Environment Program and IPCC 4th Assessment

The Human Toll

Number disagreeing with the global consensus that greenhouse gas pollution has caused most of the warming of the last 50 years:

Science, December 3, 2004 Vol. 306, Issue 5702,1686

Number of scientific studies dealing with “climate change” published in scientific journals between 1993 and 2003:

IPCC Fourth Assessment Report

Over 1,200 authors

2,500 scientific expert reviewers from more than 130 countries

The Science, the Choices, the Benefits

Have Never Been More Clear

The Most Important CrossroadsOf Our Lives…

“We must never submit to

hopelessness in the face of this

bad news. Quite the contrary! Our

response must be to act boldly and

to act NOW.”US Senator Bernie Sanders, Burlington Free

Press, “My Turn: We can reverse global warming”

February 2007

We Can Prevent the Worst ImpactsBut We Need Action Immediately

We Have All the Tools We Need

Right Now.

We Need: Leaders

Political…

“We simply must do everything we can in our power to slow down global warming before it is too late. The science is clear. The global warming debate is over.”-California Gov. Schwarzenegger

Credit: John Decker

Individual - Every One of Us Can Make a Difference

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1955 1980 2005 2030 2055

Gig

aton

s of

Car

bon

BAU

Needed

Reduction “Wedges”

We Can’t Afford Business As Usual

20072%

What Do We Want?

We Want: Emissions Reduction

80% total reduction below 1990 levels

by 2050

WHAT WE NEED

- Cap-and-trade to cut overall emissions

-A nationwide Renewable Electricity Standard to increase renewable energy use to 20% by 2020

- Increase fuel efficiency for motor vehicles

- Increase energy and water efficiency standards for appliances and buildings

Congress must pass strong, comprehensive global warming and energy legislation.

Federal Legislation

1. Limits emissions from a designated group of polluters, such as power plants.

2. Sets the limit (cap) for greenhouse gas pollution.

3. Polluters that exceed the cap need to reduce pollution.

4. Polluters that fall below the cap can sell pollution credits to other users.

5. Cap is lowered over time

Cap & Trade 101

Enact Nationwide Renewable Electricity Standards (RES)

20 percent by 2020 from wind, solar, and other clean renewables

The Benefits of a 20% RES

• Pollution reduction equal to taking 36.4 million cars off the road

• Creates 185,000 new jobs• $66 billion in new capital investment• $25.6 billion income to farmers, ranchers, rural

communities• $2 billion in new local tax revenues• $10 billion reduction in electric and natural

gas bills (growing to $31.8 billion by 2030)

Fuel Economy Standards

35 mpg by 2020

• Save 1.2 million barrels of oil a day – more than half of what we import from the Persian Gulf.

• Prevent 200 million metric tons of CO² pollution.

• Save consumers more than $25 billion at the gas pump.

Save Gas, Save Money!

• ENERGY STAR rated appliances save consumers 31 percent on energy bills.

• $24 billion spent on energy each year by the commercial building industry, which releases 18 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.

• Saving water reduces emissions.

Increase Energy & Water Efficiency Standards

What Do We Need to Do?

Pass Federal Legislation

Meet Your Elected officials in

their District Offices

Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT) meets with a constituent

Audubon Can Help You!

Pass Federal Legislation

•Phone Calls: Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121

•Mail:The Honorable ______ The Honorable ______U.S. Senate U.S. House of RepresentativesWashington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20515

•Emails:www.audubonaction.org/audubonwww.senate.gov www.house.gov

*Be sure to customize emails when responding to alerts.

Congress received 200 million emails in 2004!

Every call represents thousands of voters to a legislator.

• Write letters to the editor of newspapers and magazines.

• Start or participate in a global warming blog.

• If you have a story angle, talk with local reporters.

• Meet with editorial writers from your local paper.

Pass Federal Legislation

Ask Audubon for Help

www.audubonaction.org/audubon

Pass Federal Legislation

Join

Audubon’s

Action

Center

Take Action and Vote

Tell your elected

representatives how

important global

warming solutions are

to you.

Is Congress the Only Answer?

NO!

Early Reductions are like Early Investments in Retirement – the sooner we do it, the bigger the payoff!

Individuals, Businesses, Communities Can Reduce Emissions Immediately

Individual Actions Add Up!

Educate Others to Take Action

Take Action In Your Community

Work with others in your area to:

•Help schools, businesses, and local governments cut energy use, buy green, and invest in onsite solar energy

•Make Smart Growth a priority and protect open spaces, farmland, and forests

Take Action In Your Community

Support Smart Growthnot urban sprawl

…reduce water consumption…

increase recycling and…

plant and maintain trees to help reduce

the urban island effect.

Take Action In Your Community

Increase Energy Efficiency

Incandescent Compact Fluorescent

500 lbs of Coal

What’s the difference?

•1,430 lbs CO2 pollution avoided

•$30 saved

Take Action: Increase Energy Efficiency

Replace Incandescent Bulbs

Fix Weather Stripping and Caulking

Stop Water Leaks

Change your Thermostat

Buy Local , Sustainably Produced Food

Take Action At HomeThe Easy Stuff...

Take Action At HomeA Little More Effort…

I. Buy ENERGY STAR appliances

II. Dry clothes on a line

III. Reduce outside irrigation

IV. Buy less

Drive Less; Buy Better CarsTake Action: Drive Less

Leaving your car at home 2 days a week =1,590 lbs of C02 reduction per year

Take Action: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Photo: Ian Britton

Reducing half your household waste

= 2,400 lbs CO2 per year

Take Action At HomeThe Big Stuff…

1. Buy a hybrid or alternative fuel vehicle

2. Replace windows

3. Install solar or geothermal power

4. Vacation closer to home

Our Actions All Add Up

1. Help pass federal legislation to cut emissions

3. Convince others to Act

4. Vote for candidates and policies that will cut emissions

2. Reduce emissions at home, at work, at school, in your community

The Silver Linings of Taking Global Warming Action:

Better air and water quality

Clean energy/technology jobs

Freedom from fossil fuels and pollution

Secure energy independence

More forests, farmland, wetlands, wildlife

“Don’t let your inability to do everythingeverything be an excuse to do nothingnothing”

Our Actions All Add Up

It’s Your Actions That Matter!

www.audubonaction.org/audubon

© Bob Martinka