[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 165 (Wednesday, September 23, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5837-S5838]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 47--RECOGNIZING THAT THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS 
  DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTING THE HEALTH, ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, AND 
 FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN, EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT 
   RENEWED LEADERSHIP BY THE UNITED STATES IS NEEDED TO ADDRESS THE 
   CLIMATE CRISIS, AND RECOGNIZING THE NEED OF THE UNITED STATES TO 
 DEVELOP A NATIONAL, COMPREHENSIVE, AND SCIENCE-BASED CLIMATE RECOVERY 
 PLAN TO PHASE OUT FOSSIL FUEL EMISSIONS, PROTECT AND ENHANCE NATURAL 
 SEQUESTRATION, AND PUT THE UNITED STATES ON A PATH TOWARD STABILIZING 
                           THE CLIMATE SYSTEM

  Mr. MERKLEY (for himself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Markey, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Van 
Hollen, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Heinrich, and Mr. Whitehouse) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works:

                            S. Con. Res. 47

       Whereas a stable climate system at the founding of the 
     United States allowed human life and human civilization to 
     flourish;
       Whereas the United States was founded on the deeply rooted 
     principle of securing ``the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves 
     and our Posterity'';
       Whereas the Constitution of the United States protects the 
     fundamental rights to life, liberty, property, and equal 
     protection of the laws;
       Whereas a climate system capable of sustaining human life--
       (1) is fundamental to a free and ordered society; and
       (2) is preservative of fundamental rights, including the 
     rights to life, liberty, property, personal security, family 
     autonomy, bodily integrity, and the ability to learn, 
     practice, and transmit cultural and religious traditions;
       Whereas the Federal Government sets the energy policy of 
     the United States, which has resulted in a national energy 
     system in which approximately 80 percent of the energy in the 
     United States comes from fossil fuels;
       Whereas the national fossil fuel-based energy system has 
     led to carbon dioxide emissions from the United States 
     constituting more than \1/4\ of cumulative global carbon 
     dioxide emissions;
       Whereas the United States is the largest producer of oil 
     and gas in the world, due in substantial part to the Federal 
     Government--
       (1) opening up Federal public land and water for fossil 
     fuel extraction; and
       (2) actively supporting fossil fuel energy;
       Whereas there is an overwhelming scientific consensus 
     that--
       (1) human-caused climate change is occurring; and
       (2) the rate of global heating and ocean acidification as 
     of September 2020 is a result of the buildup of atmospheric 
     greenhouse gas emissions, primarily carbon dioxide emissions, 
     largely from the combustion of fossil fuels;
       Whereas atmospheric carbon dioxide levels of over 400 parts 
     per million as of September 2020 have caused a dangerous 
     planetary energy imbalance, equivalent to the quantity of 
     energy of exploding more than 400,000 atomic bombs of the 
     kind dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, per day, 365 days per year, 
     across the planet;
       Whereas the latest climate science and real-world 
     observations of that energy imbalance demonstrate that the 
     approximately 1 degree Celsius of warming that has already 
     occurred as a result of human-caused climate change is 
     already dangerous and negatively affecting all aspects of 
     society and the economy of the United States;
       Whereas the last time that atmospheric concentrations of 
     carbon dioxide were over 400 parts per million--
       (1) the seas were 70 to 90 feet higher;
       (2) Greenland had no ice; and
       (3) coral reefs suffered a major extinction;
       Whereas similar conditions will result if the United States 
     does not drastically reduce carbon dioxide emissions and 
     naturally sequester excess concentrations of atmospheric 
     carbon dioxide during the 21st century;
       Whereas climate change is a threat to national security, as 
     climate change contributes to and exacerbates global 
     instability and conflict;
       Whereas the generation of today's children was born into a 
     climate system made hazardous to their health and well-being 
     because of human-caused climate change;
       Whereas children are uniquely vulnerable to human-caused 
     climate change because of their developing bodies, higher 
     exposure to air, food, and water per unit of body weight, 
     unique behavior patterns, dependence on caregivers, and 
     longevity on the planet;
       Whereas human-caused climate change is a public health 
     emergency that is adversely impacting the physical and mental 
     health of children through--
       (1) extreme weather events;
       (2) rising temperatures and increased heat exposure;
       (3) decreased air quality;
       (4) altered infectious disease patterns;
       (5) food and water insecurity; and
       (6) other effects;
       Whereas infant mortality increases 25 percent on extremely 
     hot days, with the first 7 days of life representing a period 
     of critical vulnerability;
       Whereas heat illness is a leading cause of death and 
     illness in high school athletes, with nearly 10,000 episodes 
     of heat illness occurring annually;
       Whereas 8.4 percent of children suffer from allergic 
     rhinitis, and the ragweed pollen season in North America has 
     grown 13 to 27 days longer since 1995 due to higher 
     temperatures and greater atmospheric carbon dioxide levels;
       Whereas children exposed to wildfires suffer substantial--
       (1) eye symptoms; and
       (2) upper and lower respiratory symptoms that lead to 
     increased rates of asthma-related hospitalizations and 
     emergency room visits;
       Whereas extreme weather events can negatively impact the 
     mental health of children due to--
       (1) family loss or separation;
       (2) school interruption;
       (3) scarcities of food, water, and shelter; and
       (4) public service outages;
       Whereas, without immediate steps to address human-caused 
     climate change, the health effects of climate change on 
     children will--
       (1) increase in severity and in terms of the number of 
     children impacted; and
       (2) cost the United States billions of dollars per year by 
     the end of the 21st century;
       Whereas children will largely shoulder the costs of human-
     caused climate change;

[[Page S5838]]

       Whereas further increases in global temperature will saddle 
     children with an enormous, perhaps incalculable, cost burden, 
     undermining their economic security and the economic security 
     of the United States;
       Whereas children are deserving of special consideration and 
     protection with respect to human-caused climate change;
       Whereas children on the frontlines of human-caused climate 
     change across the United States and globally have risen up 
     and called upon government leaders around the world to take 
     concrete, science-based, and equitable action--
       (1) to address human-caused climate change; and
       (2) to ensure climate justice for their generation, future 
     generations, and frontline and vulnerable communities, 
     including communities of color, low-income communities, and 
     indigenous peoples;
       Whereas global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations 
     must be reduced to below 350 parts per million by the end of 
     the 21st century, with further reductions thereafter, to 
     restore the energy balance of the planet, stabilize the 
     climate system, and protect the ice sheets and oceans for 
     posterity;
       Whereas existing and future adverse public health and other 
     impacts and costs to children and the United States can be 
     significantly mitigated if the United States acts promptly to 
     reduce emissions from fossil fuels in the United States;
       Whereas numerous experts have concluded that there are 
     multiple technically and economically feasible pathways to 
     place all sectors of the economy of the United States on an 
     emissions-reduction path consistent with returning global 
     atmospheric carbon dioxide to 350 parts per million by 2100;
       Whereas producing energy in the United States with 
     noncarbon-emitting sources will result in energy costs within 
     the range of recent experience, ultimately saving consumers 
     money and stabilizing the cost of energy, while increasing 
     the number of jobs in the energy sector; and
       Whereas multiple Federal departments and agencies can 
     exercise authority delegated by Congress to prevent and 
     respond to climate change, including--
       (1) the Department of Energy;
       (2) the Department of the Interior;
       (3) the Department of Agriculture;
       (4) the Environmental Protection Agency;
       (5) the Department of Commerce; and
       (6) the Department of State: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) renewed leadership by the United States is needed 
     immediately to address the human-caused climate crisis that 
     is disproportionately affecting the health, economic 
     opportunity, and fundamental rights of the children of the 
     United States; and
       (2) there is a human-caused climate crisis that--
       (A) has inspired children across the United States to 
     organize and demand immediate government action to protect 
     their fundamental rights from the perils of climate change; 
     and
       (B) demands a national, comprehensive, science-based, and 
     just climate recovery plan that--
       (i) is prepared by Federal departments and agencies 
     pursuant to delegated authority over energy and climate 
     policy; and
       (ii) to uphold the fundamental rights of children, puts the 
     United States on a trajectory consistent with reducing global 
     atmospheric carbon dioxide to below 350 parts per million by 
     2100.

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