LTE Under Consideration: The Year 2022 and Climate

The year 2022 was a remarkable year for the climate.

  • The U.S. emissions went up by 1.3%
  • It was the 6th warmest year according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It should have been cooler being a Le Nina year.
  • According to Dr. Hansen, 2022 was 0.04 degree Celsius warmer than 2021 likely because more energy is coming in than going out.
  • The 10-warmest years on record have occurred since year 2010.
  • The US had 18 one billion plus dollar climate disasters.

We had news to celebrate 2022. Inflation Reduction Act was the largest ever climate bill that was passed by the U.S. Congress. Volunteers of Citizens Climate Lobby have work to do by reaching out to the state and city governments and ensure that allocated federal dollars are invested in clean energy sources to bring the emissions down.

This will improve our health and quality of life.

Kalpana Sutaria

Project Manager, City of Austin and Member, Citizens Climate Lobby Austin Chapter

Submitted to the San Antonio Express News

January 2023

More fossil fuel plants will lead to more climate-related disasters

Re: July 7 article, “Abbott orders utility commission to shore up Texas power grid, targets renewable energy.”

Current headlines are full of reports of climate-related disasters — fires in California, 120-plus degree heat in Canada, and on and on.

Yet, Gov. Abbott calls for more natural gas and coal power plants, which will only make climate problems worse.

Past Republican governors, Bush and Perry, led the way for Texas’ becoming a leader in wind energy.

Clean energy is not just a Democratic thing. It’s a human thing.

Philip Russell

Austin American-Statesman

July 9, 2021