After 25 years in the Lehigh Valley with a dry basement, we’re now facing thousands of dollars of foundation work and yard restructuring to reroute this river of relentless rain.

We grumble as we pay big bucks to reinforce our homes’ foundations, but it’s a sound investment in our healthy future. Likewise, it’s a sound investment to pass a big climate reconciliation package in the Senate to stop the trend toward excessive rainfall and extreme weather. We must do it for the health of our children and grandchildren.

Dry basements, clean air, and good health are bipartisan desires. All of us in the Lehigh Valley lie within the state’s fastest warming region (via NOAA). This warming is causing more evaporation, which causes rain clouds to pack a bigger punch. The reason for the warming is the rampant burning of gas and oil (via IPCC), as 99% of legitimate climate scientists agree (Mark Lynas et al 2021 Environ. Res. Lett. 16 114005).

We must transition to green, sustainable jobs and renewable energy sources, but we don’t have to choose between a great economy and a clean environment.

The climate reconciliation package includes funding for clean energy projects, assistance for rooftop solar and weatherization, clean manufacturing jobs, a Civilian Conservation Corps for public land conservation, and bolstering community resilience. Let’s address carbon pollution/warming/extreme weather while creating good-paying union jobs for more Pennsylvanians. Call on Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey to make sound investments in our future by passing the climate reconciliation bill!

Jill Schneider

Easton

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Originally Appeared Here