Last week we sent out an email announcing the sad news that we, collectively, are failing to change the trajectory of methane emissions and climate change more broadly, and that elected officials in New Mexico are failing to display the urgency of purpose, integrity and bravery necessary to take real climate action. Instead oil and gas extraction in New Mexico has doubled since Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham took over, and our elected legislators are beholden to the oil and gas companies that contributed more than $2.9 million to their political campaigns in the current election cycle.
Not only has our legislature failed to pass any meaningful emissions reduction bills or regulations to curb oil and gas industry exploitation, but they are doing the dirty work of the industry, promoting false "Advanced Energy Technology" solutions like hydrogen, carbon capture, carbon credits and the "Strategic Water Supply." These are shiny objects being dangled by oil and gas executives to distract from the real work that needs to be done.
So what does real climate action look like?
The deep work necessary to envision and enact a Just Transition first requires deconstruction of the neo-liberal economic philosophy that is directly responsible for our current crisis of environmental degradation, economic inequality and societal breakdown, a crisis now being used by right wing forces to invite fascism as a solution to all those feeling hopeless and disenfranchised around the world. Neoliberalism is so deeply entrenched that most of us don't even recognize its pervading influence. We accept without question the premise that competition is the only legitimate organizing principle for human activity, and that "the free market" delivers benefits that could never be achieved by cooperation or government. People are consumers. Public services should be privatized. Taxes and regulations should be minimized. Monopolies are good because they concentrate buying power and maximize efficiency. This free market ensures that everyone gets what they deserve, revealing who and what is valuable. Those who fall behind are simply not deserving.
Neoliberalism holds that there should be few or no legal restrictions on capitalism.
But this was not always our Gospel. In the 1930's, after the Great Depression and the subsequent and successful implementation of FDR's New Deal, the US government was suddenly involved in the economy in a way it had never been before. Taxes were imposed on the wealthy and programs were implemented to provide work and security, to care for our elderly, the unemployed and the hungry, there was meaningful investment in arts and culture, and the National Industrial Recovery Act was passed, which allowed the government to regulate industry and business.
The success of that New Deal engendered a tremendous faith in government, a faith that persisted through World War II and for many years following. The ultra-wealthy were not amused, however, and seized on neoliberal economic theory as an opportunity to free themselves from pesky regulations and taxes, funding a series of think tanks which would refine and promote the ideology, including the American Enterprise Institute, the Heritage Foundation (of Project 2025 fame), and the Cato Institute, and sponsoring news outlets and academics around the country. When the Vietnam War and the Arab Oil embargo began to affect the economy in the 1970's, they seized the opportunity to undermine the people's faith in Government, using their carefully placed influencers to put the magical free market onto the pedestal where it still sits.
The koolaid was swallowed by Republican and Democrat alike. President Carter deregulated the trucking industry and the airline industry, and slashed capital gains taxes, which helped investors over everyone else. We saw massive tax cuts for the rich, the crushing of trade unions, deregulation, privatization, outsourcing and competition in public services. Reagan famously said "Government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem." Clinton declared that "The era of big government is over." The results were predictable:
The top 1%'s share of world income fell during the New Deal but began rising sharply again in the 1970's. The top 0.1% now hold a larger share than the bottom 50% of people. The world's five richest men have more than doubled their wealth since 2020, while 5 billion people were made poorer.
Inequality has risen rapidly due to the smashing of trade unions, tax reductions, rising rents, privatization and deregulation. The privatization of public services such as energy, water, trains, health, education, and roads has enabled corporations to set up tollbooths in front of these essential services and charge a premium, either to citizens or to government, for their use.
Real climate solutions reject this failed neoliberal paradigm. They affirm that we are not just consumers but also members of communities, with rights and responsibilities. We thrive when we cooperate rather than compete, when we put the public interest above economic profit. Real climate solutions:
1. Match the scale and urgency of the climate crisis, relentlessly prioritizing emissions reductions at the scale and speed necessary to prevent climate chaos. 2. Invest in energy democracy, empowering communities to conserve and localize as much energy production as possible with renewables and batteries - when micro-grids and community solar can meet the needs choose them. 3. Follow the Polluter Pays principle, ensuring that those who have and are causing the harm pay for the energy transition and mitigation of existing climate impacts whenever possible. 4. Compensate impacted frontline communities and workers, and comply with the principles of Free, Prior and Informed Consent from Indigenous tribes.
We do not need to compete with Texas for business, or try to ensure the Permian outlasts every other oilfield on earth so we can squeeze the very last dollar out of the ground. We do not need to invite more destructive industries like hydrogen and carbon capture out of desperation for industry dollars. Economic benefit is not the only important barometer of any given policy's value to society.
Despite the immense power of the wealthiest 1% who benefit from neoliberalism, they can be resisted, and the power of cooperation and enlightened governance can be harnessed to take real action that ignores the aversion of the superwealthy and corporations to both regulation and taxes. In fact that is exactly what we need more of!
Here are some examples of the kind of bold proactive policies that could make a real difference in NM and elsewhere:
The Global Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation treaty is an effort underway by a growing bloc of 13 countries seeking a negotiating mandate for a concrete, binding treaty to end the expansion of new coal, oil and gas projects and manage a global transition away from fossil fuels.
Similar to farm policies that pay farmers not to produce for a variety of reasons, the Federal Government could directly incentivize emissions reductions by paying oil and gas dependent states to reduce fossil fuel production. A Federal subsidy for oil and gas dependent states would release states like New Mexico from the stranglehold of industry influence and mandate a transition to alternative economic models within a given time frame.
Vermont and New York just passed Climate Superfund legislation. These bills require companies that significantly contribute to greenhouse gas emissions to pay into a fund dedicated to climate mitigation and adaptation projects. This includes energy efficiency programs, renewable energy projects, and infrastructure improvements to better withstand extreme weather events. Here in New Mexico we could tax oil and gas companies for every barrel produced in the state to establish an Energy Transition Fund to support communities, workers and frontline communities dealing with climate impacts and solarize the entire state (yes, every public building, every school, every hospital and fire station).
A City of Richmond ballot proposal would have asked voters to decide whether the city should impose a $1 per barrel tax on feedstock refined at Chevron's Richmond refinery for 50 years. Just before the City Council's expected unanimous vote on the ballot proposal, Richmond officially accepted a settlement with Chevron, bringing the city more than a half billion dollars over 10 years. Communities in New Mexico could take their own initiative and do the same.
A Public Power NM study of the potential for New Mexico to own and profit from our enormous solar and wind energy potential found that public ownership of solar and wind generation and transmission could generate more than $1 billion per year in revenue for the state.
The New Mexico's legislature could, at the very least, begin by increasing royalty rates on oil and gas leases, enforce current regulations, revoke permits for non-compliance, designate oil, gas and coal waste as hazardous waste, and enact rules to promote energy efficiency and distributed generation models.
The people are not waiting! A June 2024 report found that climate litigation is on the rise, with at least 230 new climate cases filed in 2023. Many of these are seeking to hold governments and companies accountable for climate action. Here in New Mexico the State government is already on the defensive in Atencio v. State of New Mexico, and we are putting up a strong defense against the false solutions being pushed in our state, including further entrenchment of international corporate ownership of our energy system, hydrogen, produced water reuse and the Strategic Water Supply, and the continued pollution of our air, land and water with the oil and gas industry's toxic, hazardous waste.
The great Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu ended his Tao-te Ching with these words: "Above all, do not compete." Instead we must cooperate, putting our faith in science, in the principles of social justice, and holding our national and international institutions and governing bodies accountable to the public to solve the greatest existential threat we face - the destruction of our home.
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