Earth Day 2017 – Mr. President, Go Green

Veteran Co-Owned Solar Company Based in San Diego, CA - Photo Semper Solaris
Veteran Co-Owned Solar Company Based in San Diego, CA – Photo Semper Solaris

For Earth Day this year, coming up on April 22, 2017, write a letter to President Trump letting him know a concern of yours, environmental or otherwise.

Prior to the first Earth Day in 1970, smog was so thick in some cities you could not see across the street, water pollution was so bad that rivers caught on fire, and pesticides were poisoning not only pests but people and wildlife, too. Richard Nixon was the President of the United States.

On April 22, 1970, millions of Americans took to the streets demanding that the Federal Government take action to protect the environment and public health. The modern environmental movement gained traction and people from all walks of life supported environmental legislation. During the 1970’s, the Environmental Protection Agency was founded and Congress passed important environmental laws including the Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act.

Since 1970, Earth Day as spread around the world encouraging people everywhere to take action to protect Mother Earth, the place we all call home.

A few years ago, I began a tradition of writing to the President of the United States for Earth Day (I write on other days, too). This year, I wrote the letter below to President Trump about renewable energy.

April 17, 2017

President Donald Trump
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Re: National Security and Renewable Energy

Dear President Trump,

While reading your 2018 budget proposal America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again, a sentence in your message to Congress on page 7 resonated with me.

“A budget that puts America first must make the safety of our people its number one priority—because without safety, there can be no prosperity.”

Safety from terrorist attacks is just one way to help Americans feel safe. We also need clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, healthy food to eat, a roof over our heads, and a habitable planet to live on.

As an American citizen, I respectfully urge you to support ramping up renewable energy to promote safety and prosperity for all Americans.

The Pentagon has stated that climate change is a major threat to national security and the DOD has embraced renewable energy to improve systems efficiency, troop safety, and mission effectiveness.

Expanding renewable energy to power American homes, businesses and transportation would enhance our national security and provide jobs. The U.S. Energy and Employment Report and the Annual Energy Outlook 2017 with projections to 2050 provide compelling information about how renewable energy and energy efficiency is already contributing to your make America great again strategy.

Solar – 374,000 Americans are working full or part-time in the solar industry, a workforce increase of 25% in 2016. American veterans hold 9% of the 260,077 full-time solar jobs.

Wind – 102,000 Americans are working in the wind industry, a workforce increase of 32% in 2016.

Energy Efficiency – 2.2 million Americans are working on energy efficient products and services related to the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program (which you propose eliminating). Of those jobs, 290,000 are manufacturing jobs.

Mr. President, you have considerable business experience and acumen, which is why many Americans voted for you, so I urge you to put that knowledge to work in supporting renewable energy.

My spouse and I are trying to do our part. When we installed solar panels on our roof, we specifically chose a manufacturer producing panels in the U.S. and paid 9% extra to support American workers.

Let us work together to keep Earth habitable for our children, grandchildren, and generations to come.

Sincerely,

Linda Poppenheimer

The Unlikely Environmentalist at greengroundswell.com

For Earth Day 2017, please write a letter to President Trump and join millions of Americans and me for the March for Science on April 22. If you cannot make it on the 22nd, then consider participating in the People’s Climate Movement March on April 29.

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