Walk the energy talk

While pointing to a hopeful trend, your Oct. 7 article "State, cities act on climate" made a critically important omission. You explained correctly that "Duke Energy's president was among the corporate executives who stepped forward in January and called for immediate federal action to address climate change."

Surprisingly, you failed to mention that while Jim Rogers has repeatedly been lauded on the national stage for talking about slowing greenhouse pollution, his actions at home are in blatant contradiction:

Rogers is trying to build a large coal-fired power plant at Cliffside, N.C. -- with no means to capture CO2.

Moreover, he insists -- as during testimony before the N.C. Utilities Commission -- that the Cliffside plants (he wanted to build two) should be exempt from the very carbon regulations he's promoting nationally.

If Cliffside ever opens, with its 6 million tons of annual CO2 emissions, it will negate much, if not all, of the carbon reduction efforts being made statewide.

Quite simply, pursuing new power plants -- coal and nuclear -- is squandering both the time and resources needed to cut greenhouse gases.

North Carolinians should urge Rogers to walk his talk. We sure need the leadership.

Jim Warren

Executive Director, N.C. Waste Awareness & Reduction Network

Durham