Opinion: Don't let climate catastrophists hijack Covid-19 relief
Ever since it was first uttered by former White House Chief of Staff (and later Chicago Mayor) Rahm Emanuel to newly elected President Barack Obama during the 2008 financial crisis, the phrase “never allow a good crisis to go to waste” has been a cornerstone of the far left's strategy to push forward their liberal agenda.
While this concept has been utilized on a variety of issues, it is used most frequently on issues of energy and the environment, where the liberals have attempted to leverage every natural phenomenon, including hurricane and drought, to prop up the solar and wind industry, and push forward their radical climate change agenda.
Hijacking the Covid-19 pandemic. The idea of profiting off the hardships of others has always made me uneasy. For most of us, tragedy is a time to come together and truly show what we can do as unified Texans and Americans, to help our neighbors in their time of need. We did so during Hurricane Harvey, and I believe we will do so again, as we start the long road to recovery from Covid-19, as long as we don't allow vocal minorities to hijack the recovery for their pet projects or causes.
That seems to be exactly what the International Energy Agency (IEA) is doing, as it recently urged national governments across the world to use coronavirus-related legislation to put global warming goals into law, such as dramatically increasing investment in renewable energy over the next decade.1 The world spends up to $264 billion per year on renewable energy, but the IEA says that this is “nowhere near enough,” and that it must at least double to more than a half-trillion annually over the next 10 years to prevent global warming.1
Projections and models are an important part of science, but what the public fails to realize, when they read a prediction, is that models, like the weather forecast, are fluid and can change drastically as variables change. Covid-19 models are a great example. These models are also created by imperfect people that must seek funding to pay for their research. What is the easiest way to convince people that your work is important enough for financial investment? Tell them the world is going to end.
Flawed models. The IEA's policy recommendations are wrong for several reasons, but primarily because they are based on flawed models that have incorrectly predicted catastrophe for decades. Over the last 40 years, models created by the United Nations have, on average, “predicted about twice as much warming as has” happened, according to The Wall Street Journal.2 Except for an unusually strong El Nino in 2015, surface temperatures, globally, have not increased significantly since 2000.2
This would suggest that emissions were capped (i.e., have not increased) in the last 20 years, but they were not capped.2 Oil and gas consumption have increased, but without any impact on surface temperatures. You would expect the experts to ask why. Instead they predict dire famines, deadly “clouds of blue steam” and a new ice age.3 None of this happened. Imagine being 100% wrong at your job—that is climate catastrophists. The law should not be based on predictions from folks that are always wrong.
Second, existing law and technological innovation have been improving environmental quality steadily— despite record consumption of fossil fuels—for decades. The six major air pollutants monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have fallen 73% since 1970, while our economy grew 262% and our population increased 60%.4 Furthermore, from 2000 through 2017, the United States lowered its carbon emissions nine times, more than any country in the world.5 Thanks to efforts by the federal government, state governments, and oil and gas companies, the environment has not been cleaner since the end of World War II.
Third, fossil fuels create plentiful, affordable and reliable energy that generates nearly two-thirds of the electricity in the United States and powers more than 99% of the cars and trucks on our roads.6, 7, 8 According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, wind and solar, combined, make up only ten percent of our nation's energy.6 Modern physics dictates that with current technology, wind and solar just cannot do the job, even with substantial help in the form of government subsidies.
With millions unemployed and hundreds of thousands sick across the globe, it is nauseating that environmental ideologues are attempting to use this situation to sneak, or shove, their agenda down our throats. Oil and gas production and consumption generate vastly more electricity, power many more vehicles, create more high-paying jobs, save consumers more money, and pay much more in taxes than intermittent energy sources, like wind and solar. The average American and global citizen has nothing to gain, and a lot to lose, from a push to renewable energy at the expense of oil and gas.
WAYNE CHRISTIAN, a lifelong conservative businessman, was elected to a six-year term as the 50th Texas Railroad Commissioner in November 2016. In June 2019, he was elected to lead the agency as Chairman by his fellow commissioners. Prior to his time at the commission, Mr. Christian served seven sessions in the Texas House of Representatives, accumulating a strong record of standing for free markets and against burdensome regulations. In addition to his duties as a commissioner, he was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to serve as the Official Representative of Texas on the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission.
REFERENCES
1. https://www.pv-tech.org/news/renewables-spending-must-double-as-pandemic-squeezes-broader-energy-funding
2. https://www.wsj.com/articles/thirty-years-on-how-well-do-global-warming-predictions-stand-up-1529623442
3. https://cei.org/blog/wrong-again-50-years-failed-eco-pocalyptic-predictions
4. https://gispub.epa.gov/air/trendsreport/2018/
5. https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/chart-of-the-day-in-2017-us-had-largest-decline-in-co2-emissions-in-the-world-for-9th-time-this-century/?source=techstories.org
6. https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=427&t=3
7. https://www.eei.org/resourcesandmedia/newsroom/Pages/Press%20Releases/EEI%20Celebrates%201%20Million%20Electric%20Vehicles%20on%20U-S-%20Roads.aspx
8. https://hedgescompany.com/automotive-market-research-statistics/auto-mailing-lists-and-marketing/
