[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 77 (Thursday, May 4, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2776-S2777]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 155--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT THE 
    UNITED STATES SHOULD WORK IN COOPERATION WITH THE INTERNATIONAL 
  COMMUNITY AND CONTINUE TO EXERCISE GLOBAL LEADERSHIP TO ADDRESS THE 
      CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

  Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Coons, Mr. 
Udall, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Markey, Mr. Merkley, and Mr. Booker) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 155

       Whereas the consensus among climatologists and scientists 
     studying the effects of atmospheric change, including the 
     Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the National 
     Academy of Science, the United States Geological Survey, the 
     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National 
     Aeronautics and Space Administration, and other agencies 
     within the United States Global Change Research Program, have 
     determined that the impact of climate change will include 
     widespread effects on health and welfare, including increased 
     outbreaks from waterborne diseases, more droughts, diminished 
     agricultural production, severe storms and floods, heat 
     waves, wildfires, and a substantial rise in global sea 
     levels;
       Whereas the objective of the 1992 United Nations Framework 
     Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is to stabilize 
     greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level 
     that will prevent dangerous human interference with the 
     climate system;
       Whereas, under the UNFCCC, the United States is obligated 
     to report its progress on reducing emissions;
       Whereas the Senate provided its advice and consent to the 
     UNFCCC by division, with two-thirds of Senators present 
     voting in the affirmative, on October 7, 1992;

[[Page S2777]]

       Whereas, in 2011, at the 17th Conference of the Parties 
     (COP 17) to the UNFCCC in Durban, South Africa, parties 
     agreed to negotiate an agreement by the end of 2015 to reduce 
     emissions in the post-2020 period;
       Whereas the UNFCCC calls on parties to submit intended 
     nationally-determined contributions outlining voluntary 
     individual targets for emissions reductions by the time 
     parties convened in Paris on November 30, 2015, for the 21st 
     Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the UNFCCC;
       Whereas, prior to completing the multilateral Paris 
     Agreement on international cooperation to address climate 
     change, done at Paris December 12, 2015, 187 nations, 
     representing more than 97 percent of global greenhouse gas 
     emissions, voluntarily submitted nationally determined goals 
     and plans to reduce their greenhouse gas pollution;
       Whereas independent analyses by the National Oceanic and 
     Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and 
     Space Administration confirmed that 2016 was the warmest year 
     on record, making 2015 the second warmest year on record and 
     2014 the third warmest year on record, continuing a 35 year-
     long warming trend with 16 of the 17 warmest years on record 
     occurring since 2001;
       Whereas the United States-China Joint Announcement on 
     Climate Change of November 2014 included a United States goal 
     to reduce its emissions by 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 
     2025 and a Chinese goal to peak emissions output by 2030 and 
     increase the use of non-fossil fuels to 20 percent of its 
     overall energy portfolio by 2030;
       Whereas, under the United States-India Joint Announcement 
     on Climate and Clean Energy of January 2015, the two 
     countries pledged to increase cooperation on clean energy 
     financing and development and India committed to phase out 
     use of hydrofluorocarbons and increase promotion of energy 
     efficiency tools and reaffirmed its commitment to add 100 
     gigawatts of solar capacity by 2022;
       Whereas small island states, whose people are among the 
     most vulnerable to climate change, are threatened with 
     partial or virtually total inundation by imminent rises in 
     sea level and increased intensity and frequency of storms;
       Whereas global greenhouse gas emissions have remained level 
     for the past three years, even while global Gross Domestic 
     Product (GDP) has grown;
       Whereas United States international leadership on the 
     global stage throughout the United Nations Framework 
     Convention on Climate Change's 21st Conference of Parties 
     process resulted in unprecedented international cooperation 
     and engagement on the development of the Paris Agreement;
       Whereas the Paris Agreement received consensus approval 
     from the more than 190 delegates to the United Nations 
     Framework Convention on Climate Change's 21st Conference of 
     Parties;
       Whereas the Paris Agreement reached its thresholds for 
     entry into force faster than any other multilateral 
     international agreement of comparable size and scope;
       Whereas, as of the date of introduction of this resolution, 
     127 of the 197 parties to the Paris Agreement, representing 
     81.4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, have 
     officially joined the agreement, demonstrating the urgency 
     and importance the global community places on addressing 
     climate change;
       Whereas the cost of inaction on climate change will have 
     devastating impacts to the United States economy, costing 
     billions of dollars in lost GDP;
       Whereas extreme weather, intensified by climate change, has 
     already cost United States taxpayers billions of dollars each 
     year in recovery efforts, and will continue to increase if 
     climate change is left unaddressed;
       Whereas decreased GDP and increased costs of infrastructure 
     repairs and other recovery efforts will significantly 
     increase budget deficits and undermine the fiscal stability 
     of the United States;
       Whereas climate change will have devastating public health 
     implications, including increased rates of asthma and other 
     respiratory diseases, especially in vulnerable populations 
     like children and low income communities, the spread of 
     infectious diseases, risks to food and water supplies, and 
     increased premature deaths;
       Whereas the emissions reductions pledged by the United 
     States under the Paris Agreement may save nearly 300,000 
     lives in the United States by 2030 as a result of positive 
     health outcomes corresponding to lower air pollution;
       Whereas studies conducted by the NASA Earth Observatory 
     determined that as the oceans have warmed, polar ice has 
     melted and porous landmasses have subsided, global mean sea 
     level has risen by 8 inches (20 centimeters) since 1870, and 
     the rate of sea level rise is faster now than at any time in 
     the past 2,000 years, having doubled in the past two decades, 
     putting 55 to 60 percent of United States citizens who live 
     in counties touching the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean, the Gulf 
     of Mexico, or the Great Lakes at risk from the effects of sea 
     level rise;
       Whereas the Department of Defense has identified climate 
     change as a ``threat multiplier'' that will increase global 
     instability and conflict with the potential to increase 
     terrorism;
       Whereas the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review states that 
     ``[t]he impacts of climate change may increase the frequency, 
     scale, and complexity of future missions, including defense 
     support to civil authorities, while at the same time 
     undermining the capacity of our domestic installations to 
     support training activities,'' and notes that--
       (1) climate change may exacerbate water scarcity and lead 
     to sharp increases in food costs;
       (2) the pressures caused by climate change will influence 
     resource competition while placing additional burdens on 
     economies, societies, and governance institutions around the 
     world; and
       (3) these effects are threat multipliers that will 
     aggravate stressors abroad such as poverty, environmental 
     degradation, political instability, and social tensions--
     conditions that can enable terrorist activity and other forms 
     of violence;
       Whereas the Department of Defense report, ``National 
     Security Implications of Climate-Related Risks and a Changing 
     Climate''--
       (1) states that global climate change will have wide-
     ranging implications for United States national security 
     interests over the foreseeable future because it will 
     aggravate existing problems, such as poverty, social 
     tensions, environmental degradation, ineffectual leadership, 
     and weak political institutions, that threaten domestic 
     stability in a number of countries; and
       (2) identifies four general areas of climate-related risks: 
     persistently recurring conditions such as flooding, drought, 
     and higher temperatures; more frequent and more severe 
     extreme weather events; sea level rise and temperature 
     changes; and decreases in Arctic ice cover, type, and 
     thickness;
       Whereas the Director of National Intelligence's 2017 Global 
     Trends Report determined that--
       (1) changes in the climate will produce more extreme 
     weather events and put greater stress on humans and critical 
     systems, including oceans, freshwater, and biodiversity;
       (2) these changes, in turn, will have direct and indirect 
     social, economic, political, and security effects; and
       (3) extreme weather can trigger crop failures, wildfires, 
     energy blackouts, infrastructure breakdown, supply chain 
     breakdowns, migration, and infectious disease outbreaks, and 
     will be more pronounced as people concentrate in climate 
     vulnerable locations, such as cities, coastal areas, and 
     water-stressed regions;
       Whereas the Department of Agriculture has determined that 
     climate change is likely to diminish continued progress on 
     global food security through production disruptions that lead 
     to local availability limitations and price increases, 
     interrupted transport conduits, and diminished food safety, 
     among other causes;
       Whereas, according to the World Bank, 1,600,000,000 people 
     currently live in countries and regions with absolute water 
     scarcity and the number is expected to rise to 2,800,000,000 
     people by 2025 due to the effects of climate change;
       Whereas the transition to a clean energy economy is 
     feasible with existing technology;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will create millions 
     of jobs;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will increase United 
     States GDP and increase household income;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will save billions 
     of dollars in avoided health costs;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will save lives and 
     improve public health;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will lower energy 
     costs for businesses and consumers;
       Whereas the transition to clean energy will unlock billions 
     of dollars in private investment; and
       Whereas, more than half of all electrical generating 
     capacity added in the world last year was renewable: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the 
     United States should--
       (1) work in cooperation with the international community 
     and continue to exercise global leadership in our shared 
     responsibilities, including holding parties accountable for 
     meeting their commitments, and address the causes and effects 
     of climate change;
       (2) remain party to the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC;
       (3) continue demonstrating strong leadership in 
     implementing the Paris Agreement;
       (4) ensure that the development of the policies and 
     procedures prescribed by the Paris Agreement achieve maximum 
     benefits for the United States; and
       (5) implement its commitments under the Paris Agreement and 
     the UNFCCC.

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