THE ONE-MINUTE ACTIVIST

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This month we ask our senators to ensure that climate and energy legislation, including the renewable electricity standard, it must embrace strong biomass sourcing safeguards to save our forests

Senator Edward Kennedy
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

Senator John Kerry
304 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

Dear Senator,

As Congress considers comprehensive climate and energy legislation, including the renewable electricity standard, it must ensure that the final bill embraces strong biomass sourcing safeguards comparable to what we have for biofuels production in the renewable fuels standard enacted in 2007.
We can have our biomass and protect our natural resources at the same time. We can strike a balance between responsible sourcing from forests, agriculture crops and waste streams, while protecting ecosystems and ensuring that we don't generate unintended consequences to the climate.

The following principles are particularly important:

  • Avoiding destruction or conversion of natural forests. Sustainably managed forests can provide some biomass, but these diverse natural forests should not be cleared and replaced with energy crops or plantations.

  • Safeguarding imperiled, threatened and vulnerable wildlife habitat.

  • Protecting our remaining native grasslands and old-growth forests, some of the most threatened ecosystems on the planet.

  • Preserving our national forests, where biomass sourcing threatens core values and uses.

I urge you to do everything you can to ensure that strong biomass safeguards are included in the renewable electricity standard and all bio-energy policies.

Thanks to the Natural Resources Defense Council