MARKEY: BUSH PLAN ON GLOBAL WARMING IS JUST 'RE-WARMING'
AFTER 6 YEARS OF NO LEADERSHIP, PRESIDENT AGAIN LOOKING TOWARDS TOOTHLESS VOLUNTARY 'GOALS'Washington, DC - With a robust international process on global warming already in place, the president announced a global warming plan today that would create a parallel process to discuss voluntary global warming emissions-cutting “goals”. This follows years of intransigence at various international forums, and consistent full rejection of mandatory reductions in heat-trapping pollution.
“This plan doesn’t actually take a large bite out of global warming pollution like we need to, but instead just ‘re-warms’ old ideas. Perhaps the president hasn’t been paying attention, but companies, states and the rest of the world are already engaged in robust discussions and taking real action to cut heat-trapping emissions,” said Chairman Edward Markey (D-MA) of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. “It’s vitally important for America and this president to re-engage internationally on this issue, and agree to binding targets for reducing heat-trapping pollution. Instead, all that President Bush is willing to do is engage in fruitless discussions until the very end of his administration, leaving his successor with the task of actually doing something.”
The president’s plan calls for international meetings to set a global warming reduction goal by the end of 2008. There was no indication that these will be binding, mandatory targets, and the proposal ignores the international process already underway under Kyoto and the United Nations.
The president has opposed any mandatory targets for global warming emissions reductions here in the U.S. and his administration has a long track-record of international obstruction on global warming. Lead U.S. negotiators in the international Kyoto talks in Montreal in 2005 famously walked out of the proceedings attempting to engage the U.S. in future commitments to global warming action. Recently administration officials have attempted to cut language from climate statements by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and the G8 climate statement, which includes committing to mandatory targets to stabilize heat-trapping emissions.
The Select Committee was active during the 110th and 111th Congresses. This is an archived version of the website, to ensure that the public has ongoing access to the Select Committee record. This website, including external links, will not be updated after Jan. 3rd, 2010.
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