[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 113 (Wednesday, July 13, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5071-S5072]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             CLIMATE CHANGE

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I wish to speak about the importance 
of recognizing the reality of climate change.
  The truth is that manmade climate change is real. This past May was 
the planet's warmest May in the 136-year history of weather records. In 
fact, the last 13 months in a row all set world records for hottest 
average temperatures. Last year was the planet's hottest recorded year, 
and the last two decades include the 19 hottest years on record. Sea 
levels rose 7 inches in the last century. And, since the beginning of 
the industrial era, the acidity of the oceans has increased by 26 
percent, which could destabilize the food chain.
  My own home State of California is seeing firsthand the effects of 
higher temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. We are in the 
midst of an epic drought, which scientists say has been made 15-20 
percent worse due to human-induced changes in the climate. This has 
made a drought into a disaster. The wildfires in California are made 
even more terrifying by the hot, dry conditions. And the fire season 
now lasts 75 days longer than just 10 years ago, resulting in more and 
larger fires.
  As urgent as this issue is, it is not a surprise. We have seen these 
changes coming from a long way off. Scientists employed by the oil 
company Exxon were warning the company's leadership about climate 
change as early as 1977, writing that: ``There is general scientific 
agreement that the most likely manner in which mankind is influencing 
the global climate is through carbon dioxide release from the burning 
of fossil fuels.''
  Even before that, White House scientific advisers first cautioned 
about climate change in 1965, explaining that carbon dioxide from 
fossil fuels would ``almost certainly cause significant changes'' and 
``could be deleterious from the point of view of human beings.''

[[Page S5072]]

  And as far back as 1956, the New York Times reported early evidence 
connecting climate change with greenhouse gases from fossil fuel 
combustion. That prescient article concluded with a sad commentary: 
``Coal and oil are still plentiful and cheap in many parts of the 
world, and there is every reason to believe that both will be consumed 
by industry as long as it pays to do so.''
  Despite the overwhelming scientific evidence, many in the Senate 
refuse to accept that climate change is caused by human activity. 
During the Keystone Pipeline debate at the end of 2014, a majority of 
Senators revealed they were in denial about climate change. Over the 
course of three votes on resolutions concerning climate change. All but 
one Senator could agree that climate change is ``real.'' However, only 
14 Republican Senators agreed that human activity contributes to 
climate change, and only five of those Republican Senators would agree 
that human activity significantly contributes to climate change. This 
denial of the link between our greenhouse gas emissions and climate 
change makes political action very difficult.
  Several of my colleagues have spoken about organizations and 
industries that have actively contributed to the political denial of 
climate change. These coordinated campaigns to obscure the facts and 
defeat legislative solutions have succeeded in delaying action.
  However, whether we act now to forestall the worst changes or we are 
forced to react to the refugees and the floods and the fires after the 
fact, there is no escaping that we must reckon with the reality of 
climate change.
  Fortunately, we have already demonstrated that political progress is 
possible. For example, California has implemented several policies to 
address the problem, including a cap-and-trade program to return 
statewide emissions back to their 1990 levels by 2020, a renewable 
portfolio standard requiring 50 percent renewable electricity by 2030, 
regulations to double energy efficiency by 2030, a low-carbon fuel 
standard to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation fuels 
at least 10 percent by 2020, and a program to reach 1 million zero-
emission vehicles by 2020.
  Here is the thing: Even as California is implementing these policies, 
the State continues to grow. The State's economy grew by 2.8 percent 
last year, and unemployment was reduced by 1.3 percent. Both of those 
figures are better than the national average.
  Combating climate change will grow our national economy; ignoring the 
reality will only weaken it. We will all be forced to recognize the 
reality of climate change sooner or later. The faster we act, the 
easier it will be to avoid catastrophic disasters, disruptions, and 
dislocations.
  This problem requires the sincere, informed collaboration 
individuals, businesses, and every level of government. It is hard to 
undertake such a collaboration, however, when well-financed special 
interests dig in their heels, and place profits over the public's 
needs.
  We are out of time.
  Let's end the denial of climate change and start building sustainable 
energy, water, and transportation infrastructure. This transformation 
will be good for our businesses and communities, and it is what the 
next generation needs.

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