Jimmy Carter with his grandson Hugo. Photo: Jeffrey Moore/The Elders
A group of 10 Nobel Peace Prize laureates including former President Jimmy Carter has sent a
letter
to President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry urging them to
reject the "linchpin for tar sands expansion" — the Keystone XL.
The open letter, which appears in a full-page ad in Wednesday's
Politico, is
the third
sent by a group of Nobel Peace Laureates to Obama urging him to reject
TransCanada's tar sands carrying pipeline, and the first one to which
Carter has added his name. Carter is now the first ex-president to voice
opposition to the pipeline.
This additional letter shows "the
growing urgency we feel for the hundreds of millions of people globally
whose lives and livelihoods are being threatened and lost as a result of
the changing climate and environmental damage caused by our dangerous
addiction to oil," the signatories, which also include landmine activist
Jody Williams, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and human rights activist Shirin
Ebadi, write.
"You stand on the brink of making a choice that
will define your legacy on one of the greatest challenges humanity has
ever faced – climate change. As you deliberate the Keystone XL tar sands
pipeline, you are poised to make a decision that will signal either a
dangerous commitment to the status quo, or bold leadership that will
inspire millions counting on you to do the right thing for our shared
climate," the laureates write.
As for the argument some have made
that if the pipeline is rejected the Alberta tar sands crude will just
travel by rail, the laureates write that this is "a red herring" because
"[i]ndustry experts agree that the Keystone XL project is the linchpin
for tar sands expansion and the increased pollution that will follow,
triggering more climate upheaval with impacts felt around the world."
Photo: Steven Tuttle/cc/flickrSusan Casey-Lefkowitz, International Program Director at NRDC, one of the groups sponsoring the
Politico ad,
writes:
As
leaders struggle with what the need to fight climate change means in
terms of energy decisions at home, the voice of moral leaders such as
these Nobel Peace laureates becomes more important than ever. And they
are sending a clear message that political leadership is essential to
stand up to entrenched fossil fuel interests and to take the kinds of
decisions that will put us on the path of a cleaner energy future.
"History
will reflect on this moment and it will be clear to our children and
grandchildren if you made the right choice," the laureates' letter
states.
The State Department recommendation on the project is
expected soon. While the State Department's review is required because
the northern leg of the pipeline crosses an international border, the
final decision sits with President Obama, who has
indicated his decision could come in the next few months.
Next week, Carter will join two fellow members of
The Elders,
Pakistani pro-democracy activist Hina Jilani and former President of
Ireland Mary Robinson, in leading a discussion on climate leadership and
activism Paris.
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