Jody Strait: Bishops are right on climate; Denham should help lead

Re “Morality of climate change” (Opinions, June 25): My heart goes out to Bishops Blaire, Ochoa and Soto for recognizing our obligation to be good stewards and protect the poor. The threat that climate change poses to our children and to the poor is serious, yet so is the threat that it currently poses to citizens in California’s Central Valley. The exacerbation of extreme weather such as drought is hurting farmers. Though one cannot pinpoint today’s drought directly to human-caused climate change, the increase in temperature alone is causing more evaporation.

With “Laudato si” and Paris climate talks coming up, the climate train is leaving the station. Who do we want to lead, a conservative or a liberal?

Here’s a conservative solution to climate change: a revenue-neutral carbon fee and dividend. A fee is put on greenhouse gas emissions at the source and refunded 100 percent to households, making the switch to climate-neutral energy feasible while growing the economy, creating jobs and protecting the poor and middle class.

I would like to see my Congressman, Jeff Denham, R-Turlock, advocate for a national carbon fee and dividend, a market-based solution that will help protect Central Valley farmers and businesses from more burdensome regulations like cap and trade.

This story was originally published June 29, 2015 at 12:30 PM with the headline "Jody Strait: Bishops are right on climate; Denham should help lead."