[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 106 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 106

 Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the negotiation of an 
                international climate change agreement.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 25, 1997

  Mr. Gilchrest (for himself, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Ehlers, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. 
Porter, Ms. McCarthy of Missouri, Mr. Boehlert, Ms. Rivers, Mr. Gilman, 
 Mr. Brown of California, Mrs. Morella, and Mr. Miller of California) 
 submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to 
                the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the negotiation of an 
                international climate change agreement.

Whereas the world's leading climate scientists, through the Intergovernmental 
        Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), have concluded ``that the balance of 
        evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate'';
Whereas the IPCC and other scientific bodies have warned that continued 
        uncontrolled emissions of greenhouse gases could cause damage to our 
        public health, economy, and environment due to (1) shifts in 
        agricultural productivity that could threaten local and regional food 
        supplies; (2) an intensified hydrological cycle resulting in regional 
        increases in extreme precipitation, flooding, and droughts; (3) severe 
        declines in the biological diversity of our forests, fisheries, 
        wildlife, and water resources due to shifts in climate; and (4) rise in 
        sea level which could devastate coastal areas through destruction of 
        sensitive beaches, flooding of barrier islands, coastal wetlands and 
        farmland, increased damage from storm tides, and salt-water intrusion 
        into rivers and other freshwater bodies;
Whereas the IPCC estimates that carbon dioxide released now will remain in the 
        atmosphere for a century or more;
Whereas the National Academy of Sciences has found that the efficiency of 
        practically every end use of energy can be improved and that the United 
        States could reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by up to 40 percent of 
        1990 levels at low cost or net savings;
Whereas research and development has led to many technologies and policy options 
        to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in all sectors, including vehicles, 
        power plants, buildings, and industry, which leading economists have 
        found can improve United States productivity and entail a net economic 
        benefit;
Whereas increased reliance on advanced technologies will produce additional 
        benefits for the United States, such as expansion of our role as a 
        leading exporter of renewable energy technologies and reduction in our 
        dependency on foreign oil and balance of trade deficit;
Whereas in 1992 the Bush Administration committed to returning United States 
        greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2000 using 
        nonbinding, voluntary mechanisms, yet the Energy Information 
        Administration estimates actual United States emissions will be 15 
        percent above 1990 levels in the year 2000; and
Whereas climate change is an issue of global significance and can be addressed 
        adequately only through multilateral action: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of the Congress of the United States that the 
United States should take all necessary steps, both domestically and 
internationally, to protect the Earth's climate from dangerous climate 
change. The United States should take a leadership role in negotiating 
an international climate change agreement that--
            (1) contains legally binding targets and timetables 
        beginning in 2005 for reducing greenhouse gas emissions 
        substantially below 1990 levels;
            (2) provides for participation by developing nations; and
            (3) is fair, enforceable, and provides options for nations 
        to achieve necessary greenhouse gas reductions in a cost-
        effective manner.
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