[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11989-11990]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          SAFE CLIMATE CAUCUS

  (Mr. TONKO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, although the House continues to ignore 
climate change, others are busy assessing the problems and options to 
address the new situations that this Nation and our world will face in 
a warmer world. The United States Global Change Research Program's 
draft assessment suggests that we have work to do if we are to maintain 
a reliable, modern transportation system.
  The committee's draft states that sea level rise, storm surge, 
extreme weather events, heat waves, and other manifestations of climate 
change are reducing the reliability and the capacity of our 
transportation system in many ways. The good news is the negative 
impacts can be reduced to rerouting, mode change, and other adaptive 
actions if we invest in our transportation network.
  The States should not have to do this exercise alone. The Federal 
Government should lead the effort to deal and

[[Page 11990]]

resolve climate change. We can improve our infrastructure, reduce the 
cost of natural disasters, and ensure that our transportation network 
serves our Nation's needs well into the future, all while creating 
jobs.
  Let's stop denying reality. Let's address climate change. Let's move 
our Nation and the world forward.

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