[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Pages 24244-24245]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  NEW WAKE UP CALLS ON GLOBAL WARMING

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, over the last few weeks, we have all gotten 
a loud wake up call about the changes taking place around the world due 
to global warming. Unfortunately, the Bush administration is still 
turning a deaf ear to these alarms.
  It baffles me that anyone can still deride or ignore the signs of 
global warming. It's even more astonishing that some people are even 
touting the benefits of global warming. Better access to oil and gas 
resources does not make up for flooded coastlines and the loss of 
entire species.
  Yet the administration is still burying its head and hiding behind 
claims of insufficient research. Despite the overwhelming scientific 
evidence put forward in two reports released by the Arctic Council and 
the Pew Center, the President is still running away from his original 
campaign pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
  In fact, the administration's top climate official reacted to these 
two new assessments of global warming by saying caps on greenhouse 
gases would not happen during this administration. Period.
  These two reports clearly show that we cannot wait any longer. We 
cannot spend another four years hiding from the truth and delaying 
solutions. According to the Arctic Council report, temperatures have 
risen by up to 7 degrees in the last 50 years and the snow cover has 
declined 10 percent over the last 30 years.
  These changes not only have a dramatic effect on Arctic communities, 
but they also threaten the economy and environment of the rest of the 
world.
  In my corner of the globe, climate models predict that New England's 
temperatures could rise by ten degrees over the next century.
  In its practical effects on us and on our daily lives, that is even 
greater than it sounds. That is greater than any climate change 
experienced in our region in the last 10,000 years. In New England, our 
economy and environment are directly linked. Tourism is one of the top 
economic drivers in Vermont. Global warming threatens the revenues 
generated by the leaf-peepers who visit our communities in the fall, 
the skiers who arrive in the winter, and the anglers and boaters who 
come in the summer.
  Climate models predict that New England forests will become populated 
mostly by oak and hickory. We will lose the brilliant red, orange and 
yellows of maple and birch trees.

[[Page 24245]]

  Ski areas will have shorter seasons and will have to invest much more 
of their revenues in snowmaking. As our lakes and streams become more 
acidic and polluted, the attraction for anglers will decline.
  Climate changes will also affect the heart of Vermont's working 
landscape--the thousands of family-run farms, maple sugar operations 
and small woodlots. Milder winter temperatures will bring more exotic 
pests that threaten our forests, worse air quality will degrade our 
soils, and more severe weather--such as flooding and ice storms--will 
damage farms and forests.
  The maple sugar industry supports a $100 million annual economy in 
our state and 4000 seasonal jobs. If climate models play out, this 
industry could be wiped out as sugar maples recede from all U.S. 
regions but the northern tip of Maine by 2100.
  But even before that, sugarmakers are going to see their operations 
affected by warming. As every Vermonter knows, you need cold nights and 
warm days to get the sap to run. Climate changes have already shortened 
the tapping season by almost a month.
  Although the changes predicted for New England are still several 
years--and, I dearly, dearly hope, decades away--we must act now if we 
are to prevent them.
  I applaud the actions taken by New England states to control 
greenhouse emissions, but our states cannot do it alone. We are all in 
this together. The Bush administration must act. Congress must act.
  I hope that the two recent reports from the Arctic Council and the 
Pew Center will prompt the White House and the Congress to recognize 
the responsibility we all have to future generations as well as to our 
own generation to start now.
  Passage of the Climate Stewardship Act is a first step, and it is one 
that I hope we can take next year.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, one area in which the Department of the 
Treasury should increase their activities is in supporting U.S. 
financial service firms in opening up markets for our products in other 
countries. In some of the most important financial markets in the world 
the Department of the Treasury does not have personnel whose principal 
responsibility is to assist American financial service firms expand 
their presence in those markets. The Department should establish 
Financial Attaches in the following important capital markets:
  Brussels: The expected pace of change in the EU financial markets in 
the next few years and the complexity of capital markets legislation 
now in formation justifies a focused U.S. presence at the center of the 
newly expanded EU.
  London: London's capital markets play a critical role in the global 
economy and foreign exchange markets.
  Shanghai: The rapidly growing Chinese economy might present 
significant opportunities for U.S. firms, but recent experience has 
shown that such opportunities will not materialize without vigorous 
insistence that China abide by its commitments. It is critical that the 
U.S Treasury Department have an on-the-ground presence in China.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues and the Department of 
Treasury to establish financial attache positions in Brussels, London 
and Shanghai and to expand opportunities for U.S. firms.

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