WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th September, 2021) ASHINGTON, September 4 (Sputnik), Barrington M. Salmon - The United States must switch to renewable energy sources to protect communities across the country, which suffer from climate-related natural disasters that are becoming more frequent and deadly, Ashley Shelton, the executive director of the Louisiana-based Power Coalition for Equality and Justice civic group, said in an interview with Sputnik.
The appeal came as the US state of Louisiana is currently recovering from the devastating Hurricane Ida that switched from a tropical storm to a Category 4 hurricane before making landfall on August 29 � the most recent in a series of natural disasters that hit the country this year.
"As we seek to process from this latest battering, we must also consider the impact of the climate crisis on communities across the country. We know that due to the climate emergency, natural disasters are occurring with increasing frequency and becoming deadlier. It is imperative that we transition to renewable energy and do so in a way that is equitable and just. Our communities can ill afford anything else," Shelton said.
The group's head pointed to the need to organize a conversation about the impact of oil and gas and how they are undermining the land, saying it is "more clear now of the need for a moratorium."
"It will be at least a month before New Orleans regains power. What does that mean? Not having electricity for a month is a problem we haven't encountered before," Shelton noted, adding that the largest energy tower fell into the Mississippi River.
She added that power would most likely be restored on October 6, with people suffering food insecurity and left with no gas as the weather is getting colder.
According to the July report by the US Energy Information Administration, renewable power sources, including wind, hydroelectric, solar, biomass and geothermal, generated a record level of US electricity in 2020, exceeded only by natural gas. Renewables surpassed both nuclear and coal for the first time on record. While US electricity generation from coal in all sectors saw a 20% decline in 2020 compared to 2019, renewables increased 9%.
