Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017 | 2 a.m.
View more of the Sun's opinion section
View more of the Sun's opinion section
As he does every August, Brian Greenspun is taking some time off and is turning over his Where I Stand column to others. Today’s guest columnist is former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Global warming is not a distant threat that might someday affect Nevada. The impacts of climate change are real and increasingly evident in our state and across the West.
Temperatures in the Southwest this June soared during the earliest heat wave on record, hitting 117 degrees at McCarran International Airport on June 20. Water temperatures in Lake Tahoe have been steadily increasing since 1970, with record rates of warming since 2012, threatening the lake’s famed clarity.
The thick ring around Lake Mead is visible evidence of falling lake levels, as precipitation patterns across the Colorado Basin change and higher temperatures increase evaporation. Nearly 12 million people in the West now live in drought-stricken areas, and many more live in areas that receive drinking water from regions affected by drought.
Globally, hot temperatures and reduced water availability caused by global warming are what the U.S. military calls “threat multipliers,” contributing to food insecurity, job loss, refugee crises and increased vulnerability of communities to natural disasters.
Defense Secretary James Mattis noted the security implications of global warming, writing to Congress that “climate change is impacting stability in areas of the world where our troops are operating today.” Military leaders are also contending with the effects of global warming on defense installations around the world, from frequent flooding from sea level rise at the Virginia headquarters of the Atlantic naval fleet to damage to Air Force early warning radar facilities and runways in the Arctic from shoreline erosion and melting permafrost. Our military leaders recognize the urgent threats posed by global warming today and are taking action to protect our national security.
To avoid the worst effects of global warming, we must address the root cause of climate change — the carbon emissions from human activity that have been growing steadily since the Industrial Revolution. Generating electricity is one of the biggest contributors of carbon pollution globally, which is why we must shift to cleaner, more efficient ways to power our economy. While some may deny global warming to avoid taking action, utilities of all sizes are working to reduce carbon emissions from electricity generation, and investors increasingly see clean energy innovation as the future of the power sector.
Over the past decade, the cost of clean energy technologies has plummeted and deployment has increased exponentially. Wind capacity in the U.S. has tripled since 2008, and in 2015, 41 percent of all new electricity capacity installed was wind. In 2008, the price for wind energy was over 7 cents per kilowatt-hour, and today, wind energy averages 2 cents/kWh in certain regions. Utility-scale solar installation costs have fallen over 64 percent since 2008. That decrease has enabled a huge growth in capacity. In just one year (2014-2015), total utility-scale solar capacity in the US grew 43 percent. Even something so basic as the lightbulb has undergone an innovation revolution since 2008. You have more choices in energy efficient lighting than ever before, and that lighting has more features, like dimming and color. High efficiency LED lights have dropped 94 percent in price since 2008 and are projected to make up over 85 percent of all lighting in the U.S. by 2035.
Scientists tell us that to meet our long-term climate goals, we need to rapidly accelerate the deployment of these innovative clean energy technologies and develop new technologies through further innovation. Integrating new technologies into existing systems often requires new business models, market structures and financing mechanisms, and sometimes even more innovative technology to take full advantage of the benefits innovation can provide. Industry executives, military leaders, scientists, governors, environmentalists and others must work together to spur innovation, drive down costs and get new clean energy technologies into our homes and businesses, our military and onto the electric grid more quickly.
Nevada is leading the way in integrating new clean energy technologies into our economy. We have doubled our renewable generation and are first in the nation for per capita solar capacity. Since 2010, the state has attracted over $5 billion in clean energy investments and now exports clean energy to other states. The state enacted nine new laws this year to restore the state’s residential solar market, create incentives for energy storage and electric vehicles, and establish new financing instruments for energy efficiency and renewables. Nevada’s leadership in the clean energy revolution serves as an example to other states seeking to tackle the challenge of global warming, and our economy will continue to grow as a result of Nevada’s support for clean energy innovation.
Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid served five terms in the Senate.
