[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 184 (Wednesday, December 9, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12799-S12800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             CLIMATE CHANGE

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, we live in a world that is being poisoned 
by greenhouse gases of our own making. If we do not act, we face 
irreversible, catastrophic climate change. My grandchildren face a 
world where there will be not enough food, water, or fuel, a world that 
is less diverse, less beautiful, less secure. As I speak today, we are 
witnessing a critical moment in our fight against global warming both 
at home and abroad.
  This past Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency acted by 
releasing its final determination that ``greenhouse gases threaten the 
public health and welfare of the American people.'' This was an action 
required by law and ordered by the Supreme Court. This finding will 
require EPA regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.
  Monday's endangerment finding is a critical step in our country's 
efforts to stop global warming, which not only poses a threat to public 
health and welfare but to our national security. I am proud of the 
strong science-based actions taken by this administration to live up to 
its Clean Air Act obligations to protect our health. But I strongly 
believe that the best way for our country to solve the problem of 
greenhouse gas emissions is through comprehensive legislation enacted 
in the Congress of the United States. Legislation that invests in clean 
energy and new, high-tech infrastructure will bring us to long-sought 
goals: energy independence, good jobs for our citizens, and a healthy 
planet for our children and grandchildren.
  We are now closer to that kind of legislation than we have ever been. 
The House has passed a bill that puts a limit on the pollution in our 
air. It dedicates funding to develop new domestic sources of clean 
energy. It invests in a new infrastructure that is less dependent on 
foreign fuels and creates American jobs. And we need those jobs. Here 
in the Senate, we have improved on our colleagues' work. Senate 
legislation makes additional investments in clean transportation. It 
provides additional oversight and accountability and support for 
developing countries. It ensures we do not add one penny to our 
national deficit. This legislation is consistent with the budget of our 
country to try to help reduce the deficit and yet make us energy 
independent, create jobs, and be sensitive to our environment.
  But because climate change is a global problem, we need a global 
solution. This past Monday was also an important day in the 
international effort. The international community began a 2-week 
meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, to work on an international agreement 
to address climate change.
  The international community has set the right objectives to make the 
meeting a success: a political agreement that promises both immediate 
action and contains the structure for a future formal treaty.
  The agreement reached in Copenhagen should include the following 
points: specific near-term greenhouse gas emission reduction targets--a 
critical part--the support the developed countries will provide to the 
developing world to adapt to a changing industrial economy and a 
changing climate--we have a responsibility to help the developing 
world--the core elements that will make up the final treaty; and a 
timeline for reaching that agreement within the next year. We cannot 
put this off. It is critical we act timely.
  The administration has taken several very important actions over the 
past few weeks to help us secure a global agreement in Copenhagen. 
EPA's endangerment finding sends an important signal to the world about 
the United States commitment to take decisive action.
  Similarly, the President's announcement that the United States will 
commit to an emissions reduction in the range of 17 percent below 2005 
levels by 2020 and his pledge to contribute the fair share of the 
United States of $10 billion a year in financial support for the 
developing world by 2012 demonstrate that we are prepared to be serious 
partners in the fight against climate change.
  That is the type of action we want to see, not only in the United 
States but in other countries that are major emitters.
  Many of my colleagues, however, have legitimate concerns that if the 
United States enacts strong carbon standards, carbon-intense imports 
will have an unfair advantage in our market. We need to make sure we 
accomplish our goals internationally and also have a level playing 
field.
  To address this fear, I believe it is critical that our international 
negotiators include in Copenhagen strong verification and compliance 
procedures that will make it clear that every state has a 
responsibility to take action to reduce greenhouse gases.
  I have seen too many international agreements that include the 
highest ambitions for labor, environmental, and human rights 
protections that fail to achieve those goals in the absence of any 
consequences for violations of those principles.

  The groundwork for achieving a final international agreement in 
Copenhagen must ensure that major emitting Nations take on clearly 
defined emissions reductions targets, adopt standardized systems to 
measure, report, and verify actions and commitments, and it must 
provide for consequences if countries fail to meet those commitments. 
Inclusion of these principles in the Copenhagen agreement allows us to 
pursue these critical components in any final agreement, and sends an 
important signal that all party countries are committed to real 
emissions reductions.
  I am proud that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee climate change 
bill introduced by Senator Kerry last week includes language I authored 
that makes clear our expectations that any international agreement 
should include strong verification and compliance mechanisms, along 
with emission reduction targets, and a strong commitment to provide 
assistance to the developing world.

[[Page S12800]]

  I will be watching the negotiations and hope it will produce the kind 
of agreement I have discussed here today. But regardless of what 
Copenhagen brings, I will continue to advocate for domestic legislation 
that invests in clean, domestic energy, and frees us from energy 
policies that undermine our national security and our economy by being 
dependent upon imported oil.
  I will advocate for legislation that invests in the industries of 
tomorrow to stem the loss of clean energy jobs--jobs that stem from 
American inventions and ideas--to countries overseas. I will advocate 
for legislation that provides significant investment in clean fuels and 
public transit, so we seize an opportunity to build the infrastructure 
of tomorrow and change the way we move people and goods around this 
country. Right now, the transportation sector represents 30 percent of 
our greenhouse gas emissions and 70 percent of our oil use. If we could 
only double the number of transit riders every day, we could reduce our 
dependence on foreign oil by 40 percent. That is equivalent to the 
amount of oil we import every year from Saudi Arabia.
  That kind of legislation is good for our country and good for 
Maryland. But we must remember that even after Copenhagen, any deals we 
reach, any papers we sign, are still but the foundation. The work must 
continue with earnest followthrough, dedicated to truly changing the 
way we work and live and move around this Earth.

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