Manitou Messenger

Issue date: 5/9/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Ben Hovland Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) visits St. Olaf to discuss the effects of global climate change. She was joined by other panelists comprised of students and faculty in Urness Recital Hall last weekend during Lutefest at 1 p.m.

Environmentalists and policy advocates united as United States Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) visited St. Olaf Saturday afternoon in the Christensen Hall of Music. As Klobuchar joined with St. Olaf students and faculty panelists, the forum focused on the current policy issues and measures being taken to address global climate change.

"I am an optimist and I believe in science," Klobuchar said. "Meeting challenges is what we do best in this country, and global climate change is our next big challenge."

Klobuchar acknowledged the shift that has occurred in the debate on climate change before Congress in the nation as a whole.

"There is no longer a debate around whether or not global climate change exists," she said. "Now we have turned our focus to solutions and policy issues."

The rising sea levels and declining lake levels that are a result of all the carbon emissions are a concern for many Minnesotans. Farmers, fishermen and hunters are all concerned for the changing landscape and are beginning to take action to further their cause in the Minnesota government.

"I don't believe we're going to fail because I see the ingenuity and determination here at St. Olaf and elsewhere in our communities and the entire nation," Klobuchar said. "All we need is a little more imagination in Washington."

Among the issues addressed were the need for renewable energy, the current status of cellulose and other forms of ethanol and carbon sequestration. Investing in farmers and workers in the Midwest for our energy versus oil cartels in the Middle East will not only benefit the environment but will also support job growth and the local economy.

With the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act being considered in Congress, if it is passed there will be a cap on greenhouse gas emissions. The bill has a goal of seeing a 70 percent reduction by 2050. As environmental issues begin to take center stage in public forums, the states have tended to show more leadership than in Washington.

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