Dear Officials at every level of government:
Transition to clean energy now and you can create tens of thousands of new jobs. Hundreds of solar coops are spreading across the state to do an 'end-run' around Dominion's coal monopoly, its politicians, and corporate allies. We are not waiting. 600 families in my community formed a coop and bought our equipment at wholesale prices instead of retail solo. Moreover, Virginia has a massive potential for wind energy. We have rail lines running into the naval ship building yard in Norfolk to haul the huge blades on the tracks for final finishing. VA has the shallowest continental shelf of anywhere on the East Coast to install wind turbines (if built 5 miles out to sea that they will not interfer with migratory bird routes nor spoil the asthetic of our beaches). We also have major winds blowing up the mouth of the Cheasapeake and on the coast to power the turbines. What are we waiting for. Virginia Beach launches their first turbine in summer 2017. Let's get going. Finally, we have enough geothermal energy under the Blue Ridge, Shenandoah and Appalachian Mountains to fuel all our energy needs for the entire East coast for the next 40 years if we would simply tap into it (see aerial maps from Google and National Georgraphic for of our geothermal potential). What are we waiting for? We have the ability NOW to advance solar, wind and geothermal. END COAL. Stop the MOuntain Valley Pipeline and ATlantic Coast Pipeline. Stop fracking, drilling, polluting and poisoning our ground water. Shame on Dominion and its corporate cronies for stealing the land from the farmers, orchard owners, Native and African American residents of Buckingham County and across the state of Virginia. HEAR OUR PLEAS! LISTEN TO CITIZENS, not corporate polluters