One of the top members of the House Energy and Commerce committee has written a letter to Energy Secretary Steven Chu urging him to start a National Climate Change Education Campaign.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), in a letter to Chu, said the public’s understanding of climate change is “diminishing” in part because there are “powerful vested interests in the oil and coal industries successfully fanning disbelief.”
“I ask you to investigate the disconnect that appears to be growing between the scientific and the public understanding of climate change,” Waxman said. “I hope you will then decide to lead a national effort to ensure the public is fully and accurately informed about the science of climate change and its implications for human health and welfare.”
The letter to Chu comes as some in Congress are trying to prevent the EPA’s new Climate Change rules from going forward.
But Waxman said Chu must act fast to educate the public, because the consequences of climate change already are being felt around the world.
“[Scientists] say that the heat waves, droughts, fires and floods that are afflicting our nation are harbingers of the dangers we face if we continue to ignore the threat of climate change,” Waxman said.
Chu is the ideal candidate to lead a wide-ranging campaign to educate the public about climate change, Waxman said.
“Your position as Secretary of Energy and your world-renowned stature as a scientist mean you are in a unique position to speak with authority about the science of climate change and the frightening consequences of inaction,” he said. “Given the stakes, I believe you have a responsibility to do so.”
It would be nice to see Chu address the problems of climate change, educating the public on the effects and dangers of climate change would help create the awareness needed to begin a solid preventive campaign.
Read More & The Full Letter on The Hill
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