[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 99 (Tuesday, June 24, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H5646]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         INCREASING SEA LEVELS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, today many Members of Congress awoke 
listening to NPR for yet another story about Norfolk, Virginia, the 
area of the United States on the eastern seaboard where we have seen 
the most rapid increase in the sea level. This matters, being home to 
the largest naval base in the world, placing in question its long-term 
survivability.
  A story in The Washington Post several weeks ago talked about the 
impact that this is having on the waterfront, including one church that 
is being forced to relocate. I love the pastor's comment that his 
parishioners should not have to consult a tide table to determine 
whether or not they can go to church.
  The morning news also included the Supreme Court's third affirmation 
of the power of the EPA to regulate greenhouse gases, setting hopefully 
at rest the long-term battle over whether or not we can deal with this 
critical area of carbon pollution.
  We also have seen a media blitz from a coalition of respected senior 
officials--Republicans, Democrats, and Independents stretching back to 
the Nixon administration--talking about the impact of climate change, 
particularly as it deals with business. We have had a report from four 
Republican EPA administrators talking about the need to support the 
EPA's effort with the new rule for carbon emissions.
  Today, on the steps of Capitol Hill as I passed, there were 
representatives from the Citizens Climate Lobby from all over the 
country who are fanning out across the Capitol making their case.

                              {time}  1015

  Mr. Speaker, the science is, in fact, clear. We have very severe 
problems associated with carbon pollution and the impacts that humans 
have had on climate. We are looking at reports that ought to sober 
everybody around here, tripling the number of days of 95 degree-plus 
weather, thinking about the impacts that rising sea level is going to 
have on coastal States.
  Louisiana, for example, is looking at up to 5 percent of their 
insurable land being underwater by midcentury, perhaps 20 percent by 
the turn of the century. There is $1.5 trillion of insurable properties 
that is likely to be underwater.
  It is time for us to stop debating the science. The science is, in 
fact, clear. It is time for us to look at opportunities. The EPA rule 
is going to go into effect. We all ought to be engaged with taking 
advantage of the flexibility that has been proposed by the 
administration to fine-tune it to the needs and opportunities in our 
State.
  It is important that we start work on the implementation of a 
revenue-neutral carbon tax. Virtually every expert--conservative, 
liberal, economists, even many business leaders--agrees that having a 
revenue-neutral carbon tax to change the habits of American business 
and households, using the revenues to reduce the impact on lower-income 
citizens and on small business, is the quickest, fastest way to be able 
to make progress on climate protection.
  We can, in fact, slow the impact, and we can prepare for what we 
cannot avoid.
  Experts in climate science, joined by hardheaded business people and 
citizen activists, all agree that it is time for Congress to get 
engaged, for Congress to stop this active denial, and come together on 
simple commonsense steps that we can make to strengthen our communities 
to slow the increase of climate change and be able to prepare for 
stronger opportunities in our local economies as we move to take 
advantage of this.
  Everybody should take action, so that all our families can be safer, 
healthier, and more economically secure.

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