I believe the majority of the Pennsylvania population would agree with Erika Strassburger’s op-ed “Clean energy provides jobs, consumer savings” (Jan. 20, TribLive). I’m glad Pittsburgh City Council sees the importance of clean energy, and I hope the state government can also set aside its cozy promises to oil and gas for the good of the workforce and the planet.
Pennsylvania is one of only three states lacking a gift ban for state legislators, and that may be why it lags in solar (49th in the nation!) and ranks 45th in wind power production. But people can see this with their own eyes. Just cross the border into neighboring states, and suddenly there are more windmills and solar farms to provide hope. We lag like champion laggards.
It doesn’t help that Sen. Dave McCormick and his GOP cronies are such fans of the Big Beautiful Bill that has diverted clean energy investment into billionaires’ pockets. We’ve already passed the 1.5 Celsius threshold, and it’s getting harder to go back. These dinosaurs will bring us down with them, unless we all wake up.
We need clean energy, we need sustainable jobs and we need to get money out of politics.
Jennifer Bannan
Bloomfield