This commentary is by Alison Despathy, of Danville. She has a clinical nutrition practice in St. Johnsbury.
On Feb. 14, Ben Edgerly Walsh, VPIRG’s climate and energy director, sent out an email blast to support the ‘Un-Affordable’ Heat Act. Walsh stated, “This bill will finally require the fossil fuel industry to help fund the transition to cleaner, more climate-friendly heating solutions in an affordable, equitable way for Vermonters.”
This gross misunderstanding also permeates the Statehouse. Rep. Scott Campbell wrote in a recent Caledonian Record article that “the only ‘obligated parties’ are the fossil fuel distributors, who until now have not been required to take responsibility for the climate altering effects of what they sell.”
These statements are false in that they do not account for the fact that the majority of the 150 or so small, local fuel dealers in our state are the distributors. Sen. Chris Bray is correct when he says the company that crosses the border owns the title and thus is the “obligated party,” but he never mentions that 80% of the small, locally owned, family fuel dealers cross state lines to pick up fuel. This effectively makes them the ‘obligated party’ now responsible for paying for this ‘just transition.’ These local businesses cannot and should not carry this burden, and they will have to pass it to their customers. Vermonters cannot and should not carry this burden either as we’re already struggling to pay basic expenses.
Many think S.5 is sticking it to Big Oil and that Big Oil is paying for this ‘just transition.’ In reality, proponents of S.5 are sticking it to their neighbors, friends, family and local businesses. These small, local dealers provide jobs, heat, and payment plans for those struggling. They also provide the sports uniforms, playing fields and other donations that make a difference in our communities. S.5 is exactly how you destroy an economy and a community.
Let’s look closer. There are only two propane and three heating oil wholesale terminals in the state. Most fuel dealers, especially in rural areas, buy directly from several out of state wholesalers. Relying on only one means price gouging and a monopoly. With access to options, there is competitive pricing and local fuel dealers can get the best prices for their customers.
Continuing to engage in this practice would make small fuel dealers the ‘obligated party’ now responsible for purchasing or creating meaningless carbon credits to offset their fossil fuel sales that are necessary for their customers who need reliable heat. One cannot solely rely on heat pumps — these are supplemental systems (unless you are wealthy and can consider a full-on multiple heat pump install — and depending on temperatures, this often doesn’t work without backup). It also creates full dependence on the grid for heat.
The largest fossil fuel sellers and utilities in Vermont support S.5 because they can weather the financial storm of carbon credit trading that this legislation brings and will benefit from playing the carbon market. Small fuel dealers will now be forced to decide if they need to stop the practice of price shopping and be bound to one of the few state terminals in order to avoid becoming an ‘obligated party.’
S.5 does exactly the opposite of what it promises — it promotes big business, creates monopolies, feeds the highly profitable carbon trading market and sacrifices people and businesses on the altar of bogus environmental justice. Most of these small fuel dealers have already been working for decades to install heat pumps and efficient systems that reduce fossil fuel consumption and promote weatherization plans and renewable options.
S.5 proponents now want to make everyone pay — literally and figuratively. That is the bottom line and it will undoubtedly bring destruction. We must see this for what it really is: a gut punch to Vermont.
Again the folks that represent us have eaten a very large bowl of STUPID for breakfast.
These people who are driven to force us all off from the fossil fuel usage for survival, have as a motive two things… in reality, very similar to the tactics used to shudder VT Yankee Power in Vernon during the Shumlin years.
The motivating factors to these power brokers are: Lack of control and money. They cannot control the fossil fuel business and the money mostly ends up out of state. This infuriates the haters of same, so banning it is the best way to solve the problems, but to h— with all of the current users of oil, propane, natural gas, diesel fuel to them it is a minor issue. People are beginning to wake up, and they do not like what they are hearing and seeing. The issues are NOT minor, my friends.
It all makes sense from the depopulation view. You can’t just nuke 90% of the world’s people without somebody noticing, and perhaps objecting strongly.
But you can eliminate the food supply incrementally, and blame the environment.
The real reason for depopulation is not that our planet can’t support so many people.
It’s nothing personal, they just get in the way.
The masters of our world assume robots can take up the slack.
BTW, the CO2 Coalition is an excellent source, I endorse them.
You are exactly right Gordon.
These people attempting to do this to Vermonters seem to be unaware that we can see people from the CDC, the WEF, Bill Gates (there are so many now) all caught on video openly discussing things related to depopulation.
What they are doing to us is completely out of the bag.
So now rather than drop nukes on us, they get us to vote in and fund our own demise.
Then along with this they’ll keep crashing trains full of toxic chemicals, burning down food manufacturers, hacking, killing us with fentanyl.. it goes on and on.
Yeah, we are being attacked by our own government and yeah, this is what the Founder’s warned us about. We’re there.
Challenging Net Zero with Science
Net Zero initiatives of governments and private organizations are scientifically invalid and will lead to worldwide impoverishment and starvation if implemented, according to a paper published by the CO2 Coalition.
The 46-page paper details how the objectives of Net Zero to eliminate the use of fossil fuels and the emissions of greenhouse gases are based on analytical methods that violate fundamental tenets of the scientific method which originated more than 300 years ago.
The paper’s authors are Dr. William Happer, Professor of Physics, Emeritus, Princeton University; Dr. Richard Lindzen, Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Atmospheric Science Emeritus, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and Gregory Wrightstone, a geologist and executive director of the CO2 Coalition.
The paper says Net Zero regulations and actions are scientifically invalid because they:
Fabricate data or omit data that contradict their conclusions. Net Zero proponents regularly report that extreme weather is more severe and frequent because of climate change while the evidence shows no increase – and, in some cases, a decrease – in such events.
Rely on computer models that do not work. An analysis of 102 computer models used by Net Zero proponents found that 101 of them had failed to match real-world observations. “Simply stated, the (computer) model essential to every government Net Zero regulation, action and the trillions of dollars subsidizing renewables and electric cars, trucks, home heating, appliances and many other products do not work,” said the paper.
Rely on findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that are government opinions, not science. The paper says that the conclusions of IPCC scientists that contradict the narrative of catastrophic global warming from fossil fuels are rewritten by government bureaucrats for public reports to support the false narrative of Net Zero proponents.
Omit the extraordinary social benefits of CO2 and fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide, including that from the burning of fossil fuels, serves as plant food that increases crop production and enables the feeding of more people. CO2, as well as the greenhouse gases of methane and nitrous oxide, help to keep Earth at temperatures conducive to life; without them, people would suffer. Fossil fuels are economical and abundant sources of energy necessary for modern societies and are critical feedstocks for fertilizers and pesticides that support the lives of billions of people.
Omit the disastrous consequences of reducing fossil fuels and CO2 emissions to Net Zero. “It cannot be overemphasized that eliminating fossil fuels and implementing Net Zero policies and actions mean the elimination of fossil fuel-derived nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides that will result in about half the world’s population not having enough food to eat,” says the paper.
Reject the science that demonstrates there is no risk of catastrophic global warming caused by fossil fuels and CO2. “We are not aware of any reliable science that supports the National Climate Assessment’s or others’ theory that fossil fuels and CO2 will cause catastrophic global warming,” said the paper’s authors, “We have written extensively on this issue for decades.”
https://co2coalition.org/publications/challenging-net-zero-with-science-lindzen-happer-co2-coalition-paper-released/
It is such a shame that Vermont has come this. As it is exactly what the Sanderista Progs do. They create wholly unworkable systems to meet some unrecognizable objective that produces a myriad of intended wrongheaded consequences and totally reprehensible unintended consequences. My only question as a Vermonter is “Where did these people come from”?
I would rephrase your statement as a “Gut punch to humanity”. Our legislature has no respect for what we are. They wish to remake us in their image and redefine what it means to be a human. They should be ashamed.
Sorry Steve, these nannies can’t be shamed but they can be voted out of office if the people don’t forget what they are doing to us. Remember the good times, hot dogs, baseball, apple pie and Chevrolet, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness? I’m thinking, Live Free or Die. If it’s going to be miserable here, I just may vote with my feet. Vermont can crumble under the weight of socialism, crony capitalism and progressive fascism without me and I was born and have lived here my whole life. I’ve almost had enough. The people have no lobbyists!
Dano as long as they can harvest ballots and print money, they really don’t care one bit what we have to say about any of it all- as we can see every day at this point.
Yeah, we are fast coming to that point where all we can do- to literally survive- is leave.