I recently had the good fortune to travel to Chile and witness the crowding and congestion of some of its big cities, like the capital of Santiago and port of Valparaiso, but also the stunning beauty of part of the Patagonian backcountry.
While there I had not noticed the tremendous strides Chile had accomplished towards addressing the climate crisis. By following the science and economics of energy production, including all externalities, the Chilean government was able to justify and pass legislation to embark on a path of sustainable energy production (wind and solar) and defeat new coal mining and hydropower initiatives which would threaten to destroy some of the beauty of the Patagonia outback.
They have already reduced air pollution in their big cities by about 70% and have agreed upon an eventual end of coal use for power. They also have developed the second largest electrified public bus fleet in the world, after that of China, resulting in a savings of $60,000 per bus each year.
Maybe our government should examine Chile’s processes on how to get these very difficult goals accomplished in a nonpartisan way, which resulted in the conclusion that sustainable methods of energy production and utilization are much less expensive in the long term, than the now common fossil fuel alternatives. Even though they are a developing nation, they have been noted to have the third most aggressive climate policy in the world.
John Kennington, Cottonwood Heights
Donate to the newsroom now. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax deductible