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Here's an outrageous story I'm sure no one's heard about:

The paper industry is using a loophole in climate change legislation to siphon off our tax dollars to destroy trees and the planet.

Conventional paper companies have always burned one of their waste products – a wood byproduct from pulp-making called "black liquor" -- to help power their mills. Now, however, they're exploiting a loophole in the alternative fuels credit in a 2005 transportation bill to qualify for a tax credit by mixing diesel fuel (a dirty fossil fuel) with their black liquor (technically an "alternative fuel source"), which is the loophole.

While the alternative fuels credit was intended to incentivize businesses to cut their fossil fuel use by mixing in alternative fuels, it has had the opposite effect on the conventional paper industry by encouraging the wasteful processes that produce black liquor, and by providing a 50 cent per gallon tax credit for the mills to add diesel to the mix. Recycled paper companies are disadvantaged (as greener companies, they don't produce black-liquor waste) not to mention the practice lowers industry standards across the board and significantly increases carbon dioxide production by conventional paper mills.

This tiny issue is just another example how Corporate America can game the system to get around the rules put in place by the citizens through their representatives. In fact, International Paper, the world's largest maker of cardboard boxes and office paper, is estimated (in a Goldman Sachs report) to pull in a $1.27 billion windfall from this loop hole for the fiscal year.

The Nation had an article on this in last month's publication, and you can copy this letter and send it to Max Baucus and Chuck Grassley - the two ranking member of the Finance Committe in charge of eliminating this loop hole.

Finally, you can sign this petition which will be sent immediately to the Senate Finance Committee.

Let's close this Black Liquor loop hole now!

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