LETTER: The false crisis of global warming
The false premise is that Nevada faces a climate catastrophe. The false solution is that we must reduce carbon dioxide emissions by spending $13 billion on solar power, the expenditure implied by Gov. Steve Sisolak’s recently announced climate plan.
The climate catastrophe has yet to break the record Las Vegas temperature set in 1931 of 118 degrees. If Nevada’s emissions of carbon dioxide were reduced to zero, it would make no difference because China’s emissions are 300 times greater than Nevada’s and rapidly increasing.
We have a non-solution to a non-problem. Even if the problem is real, it is still a non-solution. The governor wants to throw red meat to his radical environmental supporters. He wants to buy the support of the solar industry with $13 billion taken from taxpayers and electricity consumers.
This is a classic political tactic. Scare the voters with a dubious looming crisis and then rescue them with a “solution” that justifies giving rewards to your supporters.
It is silly for a small state such as Nevada to spend billions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. If that needs to be done at all, it is the job of the federal government. The new Biden administration is promising to spend fantastic amounts to do that. Why not leave it to Joe?
The governor is supported by a team of bureaucrats, academics and assorted “experts.” The experts will support the governor because experts need a looming crisis, too. Without a crisis to solve, they are irrelevant.
I hope that Nevada’s opinion leaders and media will shoot down what is a comically ridiculous plan.