Comment Log Display

Dear California Air Resources Board,

Cap-and-trade is a brilliant economic solution to a public health
problem.  It allows businesses the flexibility to lower emissions
in whatever way they deem best, and the result is improved climate
and health conditions attained in the most efficient way.  But if
the program cannot work as it intended, with steadily constricting
caps on emissions, its efficacy is diminished.  

I'm deeply concerned about climate change and I hope you will not
give yet more breaks to an industry that is already benefiting from
vast federal tax breaks.  They already receive enough assistance to
providing a service that causes wide-spread societal harm. I am
eager for the day the economic signals clearly and consistently
point them toward renewables, and only renewables.

I am writing to urge CARB to protect the health of our communities
by implementing strong rules for Californias historic cap-and-trade
program. We need to maintain, not weaken, incentives in our rules
to make big polluters, like oil refineries, cut pollution, and we
need market rules that will result in the real pollution reductions
we need in order to hit our climate targets. That means eliminating
excess allowances from the market and maintaining, not increasing,
current industrial assistance factors.

Without fair accounting for how many pollution permits should be
made available, our cap-and-trade program is toothless. Despite
receiving an overwhelming number of pollution permits for free, and
a cap-and-trade market that currently issues far too many permits,
the fossil fuel industry is asking for additional giveaways at the
expense of Californias taxpayers and the climate. This is
unacceptable.

The fossil fuel industrys demand for a $365 million giveaway over
the next three years is indefensible, and their request that CARB
offer pollution permits well in excess of what is needed puts our
2030 climate goals at grave risk. California should be holding
polluters accountable and investing in clean energy, not caving
into the never-ending series of demands from corporations that
pollute our air.

To stay true to CARBs mission, you have a responsibility to
safeguard the health of the communities hit hardest by air
pollution caused by oil refineries. 

Sincerely, Lauren Meredith