Stopping Draconian (and undemocratic) Carbon Caps in New Mexico

As “cap and trade” remains bottled up in Congress (thankfully), New Mexico quietly moves closer to allowing the appointed, not elected Environmental Improvement Board, to force New Mexicans to live under a draconian set of carbon emissions regulations. The petition, filed by the green group “New Energy Economy,” would, if adopted, give New Mexico the most restrictive, economy-stifling set of global warming restrictions in the nation with greenhouse gas emissions being limited to 25% below 1990 levels by 2020. This is a more aggressive standard than anything being considered by even the global warming true-believers in Congress.

So, what can be done? First and foremost, send a physical letter (they don’t have an online comment mechanism) to the Environmental Improvement Board explaining your opposition. I’ve pasted a sample letter below. Secondly, attend the one and only public comment session on January 11, 2010 in Santa Fe. Details are still murky on this meeting, but contact the Environmental Improvement Board.

Thirdly, contact your legislators to alert them to the problem of an unelected body usurping legislative policy-making powers and urge them to take public action to oppose the imposition of any carbon cap by the Environmental Improvement Board or any other unelected body. Lastly, write a letter to the editor outlining your concerns about this proposal and the fact that an unelected body has been placed in charge of one of the most controversial public policy issues of the day.

Gregory Green, Chairman (C/O EIB Administrator)
New Mexico Environment Department
1190 St. Francis Dr., N2153
Santa Fe, NM 87502

December XX, 2009

Re: New Energy Economy Petition, Case Number 8-19

Dear Chairman Green:

I am writing to express my opposition to New Energy Economy’s petition to the Environmental Improvement Board to institute a cap on Greenhouse Gas emissions in New Mexico.

Such a move would have severe negative implications for New Mexico, without providing any clear environmental benefit.

No other state is considering such a cap, which would mean New Mexico would stand alone in having this significant cost driver introduced into its economy. Higher prices for energy, goods and services would result from having to comply with the greenhouse gas cap. Having these costs applied only to New Mexico would make it hard for any business to justify choosing this state over others as a place locate and grow. This would lead to job losses for New Mexico and a deepening of the economic struggles we already face as one of the poorest states in the country.

All this to stop a “problem,” that of human-caused climate change, which is now more questionable than ever due to the recent revelations relating to data manipulation by certain climate scientists with the goal of “hiding the decline” in temperatures in recent decades.

Even if global warming is a serious, human-caused problem, reducing New Mexico’s greenhouse gas emissions will have no measurable impact on the global accumulation of greenhouse gas emissions in the Earth’s atmosphere. But your actions will have a significant impact on the welfare of this state.

I urge you and the EIB to carefully consider the consequences of this proposal for New Mexico’s fragile economy. This is not good public policy and I urge you to oppose the New Energy Economy petition.

Sincerely,

Name
Address
City, State, Zip