Fight climate change with carbon fee

The article, "Study finds the warmer it gets, the more world economy hurts" (Oct. 22), reported on a study that posits that there is a temperature "sweet spot" for producing things and every degree of warming above that negatively impacts productivity.

The study predicts that cooler countries, like Russia, will see productivity benefits from global warming. The U.S. is expected to do slightly worse. Countries in the developing world are predicted to be hit the hardest, depressing already struggling economies - and ultimately leading to increased global conflict.

The Partnership for a Secure America, which includes on its advisory board former secretaries of defense, secretaries of state and military leaders, has called for bipartisan action to address this security threat.

"Combating climate change and protecting our national security are one and the same, and it's imperative that lawmakers start treating our warming planet with the same urgency that they treat other security threats," said board member and Republican former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean.

But how do we reduce the most significant contributor to global warming - burning fossil fuels? Henry Paulson, Jr., secretary of the treasury under President G.W. Bush, noted that "[the] solution can be a fundamentally conservative one that will empower the marketplace to find the most efficient response. We can do this by putting a price on emissions of carbon dioxide ..."

A steadily rising fee on carbon emissions will shift our economy to non-carbon based power sources. Returning revenues as "dividends" to American households will offset higher prices and stimulate local economies.

Now is the time to tell your member of Congress that enacting a carbon fee and dividend is the first, best step to address climate change.

Deni Mathews

Bartlett