[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 120 (Thursday, July 13, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2466-S2468]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 13--RECOGNIZING THAT THE CLIMATE CRISIS 
   DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTS THE HEALTH, ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, AND 
 FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN, EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT 
LEADERSHIP BY THE UNITED STATES IS STILL URGENTLY NEEDED TO ADDRESS THE 
  CLIMATE CRISIS, AND ACKNOWLEDGING THE NEED OF THE UNITED STATES TO 
  DEVELOP A NATIONAL, COMPREHENSIVE, SCIENCE-BASED, AND JUST CLIMATE 
 RECOVERY PLAN TO PHASE OUT FOSSIL FUEL EMISSIONS, PROTECT AND ENHANCE 
   NATURAL CARBON SEQUESTRATION, AND PUT THE UNITED STATES ON A PATH 
                 TOWARD STABILIZING THE CLIMATE SYSTEM

  Mr. MERKLEY (for himself, Mr. Markey, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Durbin, Mr. 
Whitehouse, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Booker, Ms. Warren, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. 
Blumenthal, Mr. Padilla, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Duckworth, and Mr. Welch) 
submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Environment and Public Works:

                            S. Con. Res. 13

       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 fossil fuel use for energy in the United States has 
     increased since the Industrial Revolution, and accelerated to 
     the point that 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 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 
     produced in the United States comes from fossil fuels;
       Whereas the United States is the largest producer of oil 
     and gas in the world, due in substantial part to the Federal 
     Government--
       (1) leasing Federal public land and water for fossil fuel 
     extraction; and
       (2) actively promoting, permitting, and subsidizing fossil 
     fuel energy development and consumption;
       Whereas there is an overwhelming scientific consensus 
     that--
       (1) human-caused climate change is occurring;

[[Page S2467]]

       (2) the scale of recent changes across the climate system 
     is unprecedented in a multimillennial context; and
       (3) the accelerated rate of global heating, glacier and ice 
     sheet melting, sea level rise, and ocean acidification as of 
     April 2023 is a result of the buildup of atmospheric 
     greenhouse gas emissions, primarily carbon dioxide emissions, 
     largely from the combustion of fossil fuels;
       Whereas the accumulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide 
     levels to an annual average of 419 parts per million in 2022 
     has 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 around 400 parts per million--
       (1) the seas were up to 70 to 90 feet higher;
       (2) the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets largely 
     collapsed; and
       (3) coral reefs suffered a major extinction;
       Whereas similar conditions will result if the United States 
     does not drastically reduce carbon dioxide emissions in 
     addition to naturally sequester and draw down excess 
     concentrations of carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere 
     from cumulative historic emissions during the 21st century;
       Whereas the longer the length of time atmospheric carbon 
     dioxide concentrations remain at dangerous levels, the 
     greater the risk of locking-in dangerous warming-driven 
     feedback loops and triggering accelerated heating and 
     irreversible catastrophic impact;
       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 harmful 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 and disproportionately impacting 
     the physical health of children through--
       (1) increases in extreme weather events, including 
     increases in heavy rainfall, flooding, and hurricanes, that 
     cause disruptive evacuations, school closures, and 
     displacement;
       (2) increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme 
     heat waves and rising temperatures, which cause--
       (A) increased heat exposure and illness, which is a leading 
     cause of death and illness in high school athletes with 
     nearly 10,000 episodes of heat illness occurring annually; 
     and
       (B) increases in infant mortality by 25 percent on 
     extremely hot days, with the first 7 days of life 
     representing a period of critical vulnerability;
       (3) increases in drier conditions and drought, leading to 
     an earlier wildfire season peak, and increased wildfire 
     season length, wildfire frequency, and extent of burned area, 
     which expose children--
       (A) to wildfire smoke that causes substantial eye symptoms;
       (B) to debilitating headaches and nausea; and
       (C) to upper and lower respiratory symptoms that lead to 
     increased rates of asthma-related hospitalizations and 
     emergency room visits;
       (4) decreased air quality as children are especially 
     susceptible to air pollution given their developing lungs, 
     higher ventilation rate, and higher levels of physical 
     activity;
       (5) increases in higher pollen concentrations and longer 
     pollen season that contribute to allergic rhinitis, where 8.4 
     percent of children suffer from allergic rhinitis;
       (6) altered infectious disease patterns;
       (7) increases in food and water insecurity; and
       (8) other effects;
       Whereas the best scientific information available projects 
     a 15- to 30-foot rise in sea level by the year 2100 if trends 
     continue, with ever greater rises and acceleration in 
     subsequent centuries, resulting in increased erosion and the 
     loss of land, causing the loss of communities, homes, 
     infrastructure, agriculture, and coastal ecosystems for 
     children affected, until a time when levels of carbon dioxide 
     in the atmosphere are dramatically reduced and steps are 
     taken to cool the upper portion of the ocean;
       Whereas extreme weather events can negatively impact the 
     mental health of children due to--
       (1) family loss or separation;
       (2) personal injury or injury of loved ones;
       (3) damage or loss to personal property and pets;
       (4) school interruption;
       (5) scarcities of food, water, and medicine shelter; and
       (6) public service outages;
       (7) displacement, along with the loss of a sense of home 
     and a safe space;
       (8) loss of nature and cultural activities; and
       (9) feelings of uncertainty about the future and a belief 
     that their government is not protecting them from climate 
     change, all of which result in anxiety, trauma, shock, post-
     traumatic stress disorder, and chronic impacts;
       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 exposed to dangerous conditions; and
       (2) cost the United States billions of dollars per year by 
     the end of the 21st century, with costs growing more 
     expensive as the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the 
     atmosphere increases, and as chronic psychological 
     consequences of climate-related stress increase;
       Whereas children will largely shoulder the cost of human-
     caused climate change, and further increases in the global 
     temperature will saddle children with an enormous, perhaps 
     incalculable, cost burden, undermining the economic security 
     of children and the United States;
       Whereas, given their vulnerabilities, children are 
     deserving of special consideration and protection with 
     respect to human-caused climate change;
       Whereas children are a politically powerless minority 
     without economic or political power to influence climate and 
     energy policy, as they are denied the right to vote until 
     they become 18 years old, and their interests have been 
     subjugated to the interests of adults;
       Whereas children on the frontlines of human-caused climate 
     change across the United States and globally have risen up 
     and called on government leaders around the world to take 
     concrete, science-based, and equitable action--
       (1) to address human-caused climate change; and
       (2) to account for intergenerational inequities to ensure 
     environmental and climate justice for their generation and 
     future generations, including children from vulnerable 
     communities that have borne the brunt of climate change;
       Whereas children in environmental justice communities, 
     including communities of color, low-income communities, and 
     indigenous communities, that have contributed the least to 
     emissions--
       (1) have long suffered from systemic environmental racism 
     and social and economic injustices;
       (2) are more likely--
       (A) to reside in areas with greater exposure to air 
     pollution;
       (B) to experience long-term exposure; and
       (C) to be disproportionately burdened by adverse health or 
     environmental effects, including public health pandemics;
       (3) are subjected to disproportionate energy burdens; and
       (4) have less access to resources needed to cope with 
     climate-related impacts;
       Whereas global atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations 
     must be reduced to less than 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 non-
     carbon emitting sources will--
       (1) 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 
     across multiple sectors in the energy sector and the supply 
     chain; and
       (2) result in many co-benefits, including public health and 
     quality-of-life improvements, the prevention of premature 
     death, infrastructural stability, and biodiversity 
     protection; and
       Whereas multiple Federal departments and agencies can 
     exercise authority delegated by Congress to prevent and 
     respond to climate change, including--
       (1) the Executive Office of the President, the Council on 
     Environmental Quality, the Office of Management and Budget, 
     and the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
       (2) the Department of Agriculture;
       (3) the Department of Commerce;
       (4) the Department of Defense;
       (5) the Department of Energy;
       (6) the Department of the Interior;
       (7) the Department of State;
       (8) the Department of Transportation; and
       (9) the Environmental Protection Agency: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) leadership by the United States is still urgently 
     needed to address the human-caused climate crisis that 
     disproportionately affects 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

[[Page S2468]]

     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) upholds the fundamental rights of children and puts 
     the United States on a trajectory consistent with reducing 
     global atmospheric carbon dioxide to less than 350 parts per 
     million by 2100.

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