Gore to recieve Sierra Club's highest award

Former Vice President Al Gore, who has spent 30 years making the world aware of the dangers of global warming, will receive the Sierra Club's top award this year, the environmental group announced today.

Between his earliest political career in 1976 as a representative of Tennessee's Fourth District, and his two-term vice presidency beginning in 1993, Gore helped set the political and popular stages for prime-time environmentalism, the Sierra Club said today.

He was one of the first politicians to grasp the seriousness of climate change and to call for a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. He held the first congressional hearings on the subject in the late 1970s.

Since then, he has presented the science behind global warming and its predicted catastrophic effects more than 1,000 times. His message reached the general public with the 2006 documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth." The film has won numerous awards, including two Academy Awards. His paperback book of the same name reached number one on the New York Times Best Seller list.

On July 7, 2007, Gore reached a global audience with his Live Earth Concerts, when he orchestrated 24 hours of concerts on seven continents asking for each person watching to make a pledge to take action for the environment. He has been nominated for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on climate change.

The award Gore will receive, the John Muir Award, commemmorates Sierra Club founder John Muir, who lived from 1838 to 1914. His letters, essays, and books about the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California are still read today. His direct actions helped to save the Yosemite Valley and other wilderness areas.

"Al Gore is the embodiment of the principles for which John Muir passionately devoted his life: to protect a place for its own sake, for our sake, and even in spite of us; a place we call Earth," said Sierra Club President Dr. Robbie Cox.

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Gore Smear Attack Exposed

Misleading information about high energy consumption by the Gores’ Tennessee home was released in late February by a post-office-box front-group in Nashville. CBS News, the AP, and other media quickly refuted the lies in that right-wing smear. The front-group exaggerated the Gores’ annual energy use by 30,000 kwh and said it got its figures from the Nashville Electric Service. Yet NES spokeswoman Laurie Parker said the utility never received a request from the group and never gave it any information. Apparently unknowingly Time, Newsweek and other main stream media and individuals continued to perpetuate the smear.

It is true that the Gores live in a large home in the city of Belle Meade near Nashville, and use more energy than the average American family. As our former Vice President, he has special security needs that require a live-in staff. Both Al and Tipper manage their businesses and charitable efforts from their home.

Over several years an architect has retrofitted the Gores’ home with energy-efficient windows, lighting and other energy saving efforts. For more than two years the architect has prodded the City to amend its zoning code to allow solar panels. The panels will be permitted after April 1, and they will be installed promptly on the Gores’ home.

The Gores live in the East South-Central climate region that has the highest per-household energy usage of any region in the country as reported by CBS News and AP. It is about 50% higher, and is caused by a combination of cold winters and hot, muggy summers. However, due to energy conservation improvements, the Gores’ per-square-foot energy use is 19.1 kwh, less than the region’s average of 19.83 kwh. The 19.43 kwh figure in an above comment is not correct as it was based on the exaggerated amount asserted by the Nashville front group.

Some feel that during the March 21 Senate Committee hearing Sen. James Inhofe was reasonable when he invited Gore to pledge to use no more energy than the average American. Inhofe was purposely trying to distract and embarrass Gore with an impossible request. The average energy usage figure includes apartments, condos, and other multi-family dwellings. There is no way that even medium sized homes in the East South-Central region could use less energy than the average American.

Gore emphasizes several ways to conserve energy and resources, support policies that create good-paying jobs to protect and improve our environment, and elect officials who champion the reduction of global warming.

The future of our planet and the reduction of global warming are serious, complex issues. Al Gore is working hard to get the truth out. We all need to help to improve our discussions and our efforts.

Bob Alexander, Michigan Co-Chair Draft Gore 2008

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