Washington (August 2, 2016) – Today, the White House Council on Environmental Quality released final guidance on consideration of climate change under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for all federal actions, including energy and mining activities. Over the past few years, courts have ruled that federal NEPA reviews need to include climate concerns. Senator Markey has pushed to include the costs of climate change into the mining of America’s coal on public land.

Below is a statement from Senator Markey, chair of the U.S. Senate Climate Change Clearinghouse and a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee.

“I commend the Obama administration for taking this critical step in its efforts to fight climate change. As the costs of climate change mount and the voices of climate deniers rise, this updated NEPA guidance will help ensure that agency actions throughout federal government will be guided by science. Business will benefit from the certainty about how to incorporate climate change. The public will be reassured that they are not subsidizing actions that will worsen climate change. And federal agencies will make decisions that are good for the environment and the economy. I look forward to working with all government agencies to more comprehensively address climate change and implement policies that reflect its true costs.”

###