WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Rep. Edward Markey, Chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, released the following statement today in praise of the initiative of the institutional investment leaders to support bold action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions:

“This new partnership, which enlists the influence of the managers of $4 trillion in assets to reduce national greenhouse gas emissions, is a major welcome development,” said Markey. “The United States cannot, on the one hand, participate in a global economy and on the other hand refuse to cap its greenhouse gas emissions.  The Administration’s refusal to step up is unsustainable, and is prolonging great uncertainty for capital investment leaders trying to make long-term decisions that are crucial to our economy.  We need a mandatory cap-and-trade system to stabilize carbon emissions worldwide, and as the world’s biggest emitter, the United States must lead the way.”

The investment group, organized by Ceres and the Investor Network on Climate Risk, issued a Climate Call to Action at a press conference today in Washington DC. The 65 signers include institutional investors and asset managers such as Merrill Lynch, Allianz and the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), as well as leading corporations such as BP America, PG&E, DuPont, Alcoa, Sun Microsystems and National Grid.