Domenici Calls for Combined Global Effort on Climate Change
Urges greater world participation and investment in research
February 13, 2007
11:49 AM
Washington, D.C. – The Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee today held a hearing on the Stern Review of the Economics of Climate Change, examining the economic impacts of climate change and stabilizing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
After the hearing Senator Domenici released the following statement:
“I’d like to thank Chairman Bingaman for holding this hearing. I’d also like to thank Sir Nicholas Stern for attending this hearing and devoting his time to the pressing issue of climate change. There are three different hearings occurring on Capitol Hill today, which only proves how important this issue is to the United States.
“I, too, understand that climate change is a very important issue at hand and is probably one of the biggest issues the human race will face. That being said, I grow more fearful with each passing day that if nothing is done with climate change on a global scale the issue of climate change will spiral out of our control. Although Sir Nicholas Stern did mention that China and India were making some steps towards dealing with global warming and climate change, I urge more countries to continue their work and make more advances toward curtailing carbon emissions and confronting the reality of adaptation.
“Already, China uses more coal than the United States, the European Union and Japan combined. It has increased coal consumption 14 percent in each of the past two years in the broadest industrialization ever. Every week to 10 days, another coal-fired power plant opens somewhere in China.
“Compare this to the situation in the United States today. Recently, a Texas-based consortium announced plans to build up to 11 coal-fired power plants over the next several years. That announcement has met with criticism, even though it represents a tiny fraction of the expansion into coal we are seeing in China.
“The U.S. government has invested heavily in clean-energy research. President Bush has budgeted 2.7 billion in 2008 for energy research alone. We must continue to lead, invest and share our knowledge of clean energies and clean energy technology and bring China and India along. However, we cannot tackle this problem alone. We must join together in a global effort to put up large research capital for new energy technologies.”
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