[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 122 (Tuesday, July 13, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S4836]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       CLIMATE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, now, on another issue, infrastructure and 
climate. Over the past few weeks, we have seen an awful heat wave hit 
Oregon and Washington. Those States in the beautiful Northwest, always 
known for their cool summer breezes, had temperatures like 115 degrees. 
It was just astounding, not just a little temperature bump but 
dramatically unusual.
  Temperatures in the Pacific Northwest climbed so high that power 
cables melted and roadways cracked in two. At the same time, in the 
American Southwest, the lack of rainfall and depleted reservoirs have 
led to a historic lack of water. According to the National Drought 
Mitigation Center, more than 77 percent of the great State of New 
Mexico is in a state of severe drought.
  As climate change continues to worsen, extreme weather like this, 
unfortunately, is only becoming more common, putting our agriculture, 
our infrastructure, our economy, and our people's health at grave risk.
  That is why I have made addressing the climate crisis in a bold way a 
primary focus of our upcoming debate on infrastructure. We are working 
with great urgency to make this happen. And we are going to do it in 
two ways:
  First, climate change has forced us to repair and rebuild our 
infrastructure in a way that takes into account our new reality. Our 
infrastructure must become more resilient to extreme weather. In New 
York, I insisted that the Hurricane Sandy aid, for which New York and 
New Jersey got $60 billion, focus on resiliency. And as we rebuild from 
Hurricane Sandy using those Federal dollars, we have done it in a way 
that makes flooding in downtown New York City and Long Island less 
likely. We need to repeat that effort across the country to deal with 
heat waves, droughts, wildfires, more powerful hurricanes and even 
more.
  But, second, we must use infrastructure investment to combat climate 
change itself, not just make ourselves more resilient. If it keeps 
getting worse, resiliency goes up, global warming gets higher--
resiliency goes up. We need to have this go down. That is so, so 
important.
  And what are we doing? In President Biden's proposal and in the 
proposals Democrats are putting forward, we are investing in green 
infrastructure, clean and renewable power, electric vehicles and 
charging infrastructure, and retrofitting our economy to reduce carbon 
emissions and slow climate change in both urban, suburban, and rural 
areas. Investing in both elements--resiliency and green 
infrastructure--that will create thousands upon thousands of good-
paying union American jobs in the process.
  So as discussions continue on both a bipartisan infrastructure bill 
and a budget resolution, Senators of both parties must understand that 
the issues of climate change and infrastructure cannot--cannot--be 
separated from one another.
  I yield the floor.

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