On Saturday, thousands of climate activists marched in Copenhagen, Denmark, prodding world leaders with their collective presence to stop dithering behind closed doors and hammer out a binding treaty to deal with global warming before the end of the two-week summit.
| Photo by Claus Wawrzinek |
| Vigil at U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill's office |
Like the climate march in Lawrence last weekend, the Kansas City crowd rallied around a specific number: 350. John Kurmann, the local vigil organizer, is among the growing number of activists -- not to mention scientists -- that believe the ecological systems that make life palatable for human beings start to sputter once carbon dioxide levels tip over 350 parts per million in the atmosphere. That's not a future possibility. We're already past 350 ppm now. "The longer we stay over the red-line, the worse the consequences will be for all of us," Kurmann says.
So why take that message to McCaskill's doorstep? Because activists like Kurmann think political action to curb CO2 is vital -- and the Missouri senator, a fence-sitter when it comes to federal energy legislation, doesn't seem all that inclined to deal with the issue with any urgency. "While McCaskill supports the idea of passing climate legislation, she wants to go sloooooooowwwwwwllllllly, because Missouri's highly dependent on coal for electricity generation" Kurmann says. "We're convinced going slowly will result in disastrous climate disruption."
When I asked Maria Speiser, McCaskill's spokesperson, for the senator's take on the hot topic, she didn't contradict Kurmann's assessment. "Sen. McCaskill recognizes that climate change is a serious problem that must be addressed, but she won't support a bill that unfairly passes the costs of fixing it to Missourians and their businesses," Speiser wrote in a statement. "People in Missouri have no choice but to be dependent on coal-based utility companies. She will be paying close attention to how families and small businesses will be impacted."
Kurmann doesn't discount McCaskill's concern for Missourians' pocketbooks, but, he says, it's no excuse for inaction. Now is the time to zero-in on energy efficiency programs and start switching over from coal and oil to wind and solar as our dominant energy sources. "We can afford to do this, and we can't afford not to," Kurmann says.
Echoing his sentiment on Saturday evening, 20 Kansas City residents braved the cold to hold vigil for nearly and hour with signs and white candles. Kurmann says he'd sent McCaskill an e-mail about the vigil, but he hadn't heard back. Nobody from the senator's office showed up. But at least they didn't leave the lights on in the office, either.
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