To the Editor:
Like millions of other Americans, I am concerned about climate change. As someone living in the vicinity of a paper mill, cement plant, and trash incinerator, I am also concerned about air pollution.

I hope that you will agree that it would be a grave mistake to address climate change by increasing air pollution.

Unfortunately, that is precisely what Congressman Paul Tonko’s CLEAN [Climate Leadership and Environmental Action] Future Act would do. His climate bill gives financial incentives for trash incineration, calling it “clean energy.”

But trash incineration is just the opposite; it is a very dirty and inefficient way to generate electricity. In fact, incineration is many times more polluting than burning coal for dioxins, mercury, lead, sulfur dioxide, and many other dangerous pollutants.

Certainly, no climate advocate would encourage more coal burning! Tonko should admit his mistake and take incineration out of his bill.

Clean energy does not have a smoke stack. And I don’t want residents of any more communities to have to suffer from the harmful effects of living near a trash incinerator.

Linda Eckstein

Glens Falls

Editor’s note: See related story.