PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 11, 2021
When United Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center South Tower on Sept. 11, 2001, I was in a meeting at the U.S. Capitol on the Clean Power Act of 2001. Capitol Police entered the meeting room suddenly, urging us to exit the building immediately and to “run!” Our climate policy, in many respects, remains grounded in September 2001. Today, Earth is under attack. I keep waiting for scientists to burst into the room and yell, “Run!” We can stop the attack by reducing and eliminating the pollution causing climate change. Investing in renewable energy, energy efficiency and clean transportation will hold the planet’s temperature increases down. It’s time to confront the climate crisis with solutions for a clean, safe and healthy world. ~ Jeff Marks, Portland