What news! War in Ukraine. Worldwide heat waves. Polluted air and water. Rising gas prices, squeezing family finances.

Some would have us believe that fast, furious oil drilling on American soil is the solution. They want the government and banks to fund new infrastructure, sending fossil fuels overseas. 

But investing in new oil infrastructure won’t stop the source of Russian oligarch’s power: worldwide fossil fuel addiction.

Let’s choose this moment to push for a long-term solution to oil wars and the climate crisis: a rapid investment in renewable energy production, conservation, and car-free transportation. This investment would support the future of our children, the security of our neighbors, and the health of ecosystems we depend on.

President Biden has the power to use the Defense Production Act to reduce demand for Russian oil abroad and address domestic economic and environmental problems. But he must hear that bold action is what Americans want.

The Defense Production Act can be used to swiftly scale up production, manufacturing, and deployment of renewable energy and weatherization technologies. Exports of green technologies to the Ukraine, Europe, and the Global South would cut their dependence on Russian fossil fuels. 

At home, subsidized heat pumps, rooftop solar, and weatherization can support low-income and climate-vulnerable communities. Zero-emission public transportation, improved bike-pedestrian infrastructure, and electric car subsidies can relieve the pain at the pump.

We can build an economy with long-term, high-paying, family-supporting domestic jobs. We can bring back American manufacturing, showcasing the economic benefits of a just and renewable energy transition.

It’s time to call on our leaders to look for new solutions to old problems. Quit funding oil oligarchs, at home and abroad.

Let’s invest in a more peaceful, powerful, and prosperous future. 

Danielle Fodor
PORT HADLOCK