Climate change is “one of the top challenges facing our world today,” Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday, and pointed to a new report from the Department of Energy that says wind power could account for 35 percent of the nation’s energy supply by 2050.
Kerry also said that the UN Climate Change Conference scheduled to begin in Paris this November presents an opportunity for the international community to take real action as scientists say the planet continues to heat up.
"We have nine short months to come together around the kind of agreement which will put us on the right path," Kerry said. "And if we fail, future generations should not and will not forgive those who ignore this moment. Future generations will judge our effort, not just as a policy failure but as a collective moral failure of historic consequence."
The report released by the Department of Energy on Thursday, titled “Wind Vision: A New Era for Wind Power in the United States,” says that wind is becoming an increasingly viable source of power across the United States, and that it currently accounts of 4.5 percent of the nation’s electricity. That’s one example of action nations can take to soften the effects of climate change, Kerry said.
"None of this is beyond our capacity, it is not a pipe dream, it is a reality. It’s right there and it’s up to us to grab it," Kerry said. "The question is, is it beyond our collective resolve."
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--- NBC News Staff