There is nothing stronger than the love we have for our children.
While little, we read to them every night, carefully provide a healthy diet and make sure they get the best education. If they grow interested in a sport or musical instrument we drive or arrange carpools to nurture it. As they grow we try to give them all the tools they need to make good choices as they navigate adolescence.
We pay for tutors and test-taking classes to get them into the college of their choice. While we strive to insure their physical and mental health, the threat to their well-being in the long term often gets ignored.
The biggest problem our youth face is access to clean air and clean water. The easiest way we can help them is to choose clean energy to power our homes.
According to a report published by the Harvard school of public health, this makes a big difference.
“From the electricity that lights your home to the car you drive to work, modern life has relied on fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas,” the report states. “But burning them creates climate change and releases pollutants that lead to early death, heart attacks, respiratory disorders, stroke, exacerbation of asthma, and absenteeism at school and work. It may even be related to autism spectrum disorder and Alzheimer’s disease.”
How we choose to power our homes affects public health, especially our vulnerable children.
Fortunately, we can choose life saving renewable energy easily and inexpensively. We do not have to install solar panels to secure their ability to live a long and healthy life. We can switch to MCE’s Deep Green service. While our bill still comes from Pacific Gas and Electric Co., our electricity will be purchased from energy produced by solar and wind.
MCE is an alternative energy provider to PG&E and, for the average consumer, the monthly fee increase is equal to the price of a cup of coffee. One can simply go to MCE to make the change to renewable energy. Not only does this mean a better life for our children here in Marin, it addresses the horrible affect the fossil fuel industry has on communities of color.
MCE began in Marin, but now serves many Bay Area cities, including Richmond.
“As a community that has lived directly with the consequences of fossil fuel production since our inception, the power that MCE brings to our community cannot be understated,” Richmond Mayor Tom Butt said. “Having the ability to make decisions on where our power comes from and how our energy dollars are spent, means the power to fight the impacts of fossil fuels in our community is tangible and immediate. MCE made that possible for us, when no one else could.”
Half of your Deep Green payment goes toward projects like the Richmond solar farm. Construction of the 10.5 megawatt project included a 50% local hire requirement. Another MCE project, Cooley Quarry, is a one-megawatt solar farm built on an abandoned quarry site in Novato. MCE is creating local jobs as well as providing clean energy.
We need to do more than say we love our children. We need to take action to protect them from the harm the fossil fuel industry has done to their health. They deserve to breathe clean air and drink clean water, to live unafraid for their future.
The easiest way to give them that is to choose clean energy to power our homes. We are so fortunate to have the simple solution MCE’s Deep Green service provides. Please do it not just for the sake of our planet, but to protect the long-term health of the next generation.
They deserve to have a long and happy life.
Susannah Saunders, of San Anselmo, is a special education aide at Mill Valley Middle School.
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