[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6091]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          SAFE CLIMATE CAUCUS

  (Mr. HOLT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a member of the Safe Climate 
Caucus to take note of a major milestone in human history. This past 
week, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere passed 400 
parts per million.
  I say a ``milestone in human history'' because this level of carbon 
dioxide has never been seen in human history. In fact, this level has 
not been achieved for millions of years.
  I also say a ``milestone in human history'' because it is human 
activity--the way we produce and use energy--that is responsible for 
this high concentration; and it is of historic importance because, as 
scientists have made clear, this great concentration of greenhouse gas 
is changing our very climate in ways that are dangerous and costly in 
dollars and lives. If we fail to change our ways, fail to change how we 
generate and use energy, then we will face worse and worse--blistering 
wildfires, withering droughts, flooding events, super hurricanes.
  As the Earth goes barreling past 400 parts per million of carbon 
dioxide in the atmosphere, let's take action now, this year, this 
Congress, to address climate change. Let's show that this is a turning 
point, not just a marker of inaction and environmental degradation.

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