Douglas A.

Grandt

P. O. Box 6603 Lincoln, NE 68506 August 7 2013

President Barack Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, D.C. 20500 Re: Hydrocarbons are integral to a complex problem Dear President Obama, Today I read a horrifying article "Peak soil: industrial civilisation is on the verge of eating itself" which you can find at this URL -- http://bit.ly/peak-soil The bottom line is that we must begin to REDUCE burning hydrocarbons because hydrocarbons are integral to a complex problem, and burning oil, gas and coal is a relentless downward spiral. Here is a segment of the article: "At current rates of food loss and waste, by 2050 the gap between average daily dietary require-ments and available food would approximate "more than 900 calories (kcal) per person per day." "The report identifies a complex, interconnected web of environmental factors at the root of this challenge - many of them generated by industrial agriculture itself. About 24% of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, encompassing methane from livestock, nitrous oxide from fertilisers, carbon dioxide from onsite machinery and fertiliser production, and land use change. "Industrial agriculture, the report finds, is a major contributor to climate change which, in turn is triggering more intense "heat waves, flooding and shifting precipitation patterns", with "adverse consequences for global crop yields." "Indeed, global agriculture is heavily water intensive, accounting for 70 per cent of all freshwater use. The nutrient run off from farm fields can create "dead zones" and "degrade coastal waters around the world", and as climate change contributes to increased water stress in crop-growing regions, food production will suffer further." Say no to TransCanada and deny their application to build the Keystone XL pipeline, then say, "Furthermore I compel the energy industry to stop investing in capital projects that expand the carbon-based fuel infrastructure and production. I compel oil companies to reinvent yourselves as energy companies. REPLACE REFINERIES WITH RENEWABLES. DENY KXL - IT'S NOT JUST SYMBOLIC - IT'S A TIPPING POINT - ITS JUST PLAIN WRONG

cc: Secretary John F. Kerry

* Deny the Keystone XL pipeline