The Presidential Candidate With a Plan to Run the US on 100% Clean Energy

[FSogol]

That leaves Martin O'Malley, the former mayor of Baltimore and two-term governor of Maryland, who's trailing all of the above in the polls. In the wake of the pope's headline-grabbing encyclical on the environment, which champions the moral need to fight global warming and calls for a swift transition from fossil fuels to clean energy, the presidential contender published an op-ed in USA Today outlining an extremely ambitious plan to do precisely that.

"I believe, within 35 years, our country can, and should, be 100% powered by clean energy, supported by millions of new jobs," O'Malley writes. "To reach this goal we must accelerate that transition starting now."

"As president, on day one, I would use my executive power to declare the transition to a clean energy future the number one priority of our Federal Government."

Whole article here:

http://motherboard.vice.com/read/martin-omalley-clean-energy-candidate

The specifics of O'Malley's plan:

-Create a national Renewable Energy Standard that would mandate 100 percent clean energy by 2050
-Launch a seemingly New Deal-styled Clean Energy Job Corps that would retrofit buildings for efficiency and build green spaces
-Have the EPA enforce a "zero tolerance" methane leak policy (currently, natural gas production releases a staggering amount of the super-greenhouse gas into the atmosphere)
-Call on Congress to enact a carbon cap that would charge companies for their carbon pollution, and return the revenue to lower and middle class families
-Deny the Keystone XL and halt offshore oil drilling in Alaska

[elleng]

1. A fine leader, and an excellent planner.

This is, of course, what our ECONOMY needs; won't REALLY move until something like this starts to be implemented, and then will SAIL!

THANKS.

[DustyJoe]

2. resistance

Would be nice if energy savings and building green would filter down to the local govt level.

I have been 4 months trying to start to build a home with green principles

solar heat both home and water
water reclaimation
state of the art insulation
electricity demand supplemented by solar panels

And it seems that the building permit people are resisting every effort such as

denying insulation claims of efficiency demanding using additional fiberglass doubling insulation cost
wanting another septic put in when reclaimation reduces septic use by about 50%

I'm about to chuck the green project and buy a used singlewide and rent it out on the property.
It seems they won't want the additional property tax a site built home generrates.

[FSogol]

3. The reason local permitters always want a full-sized septic system is they

are afraid the property will get sold and then used by someone not committed to reclamation (I assume you are talking reusing grey water?) Also the septic field works better when all the liquid is going in, not just solids.

What type of insulation did you want to use?

but I do agree, that some regulations involving alternate energies need to change. The utility company lobbyist prevent a lot of change. My folks live in the Shenandoah Valley where there is always a steady breeze, yet they are prevented from having a windmill.

[Raine1967]

4. Really glad that Vice is giving him a look.

It's a great outlet that I believe a lot millennial's read and watch. And it is an issue that is very important to me, personally!

[FSogol]

5. I agree. n/t

[elleng]

6. and Dutch Court orders reduction in carbon emissions.

In a sweeping victory for Dutch environmental activists that could have global repercussions, a court ordered the government Wednesday to cut the country's greenhouse gas emissions by at least 25 percent by 2020.

The ruling by The Hague District Court could lay the foundations for similar cases around the world, said the director of the organization that took the government to court on behalf of 900 Dutch citizens.

The plaintiffs argued — and the court agreed — that the government has a legal obligation to protect its people against looming dangers, including the effects of climate change on this low-lying country, much of which is below sea level and vulnerable to rising sea levels caused by global warming.

"This is a great victory — the judge said exactly what we wanted and had the courage and wisdom to say to the government 'you have a duty of care toward your citizens,'" said Marjan Minnesma, director of Urgenda, the group that filed the case. I

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141125602

SHOULD become contagious. And isn't/wasn't SHELL a Dutch company?