Environment America is the new home of U.S. PIRG’s environmental work.
Statement of Emily
Figdor, U.S. PIRG Federal Global
Warming Program Director
The draft
bill unveiled today by Senators Lieberman (Conn.) and Warner (Va.) is an
encouraging starting point for Senate action on global warming. We commend the senators for their
achievement. However, significant
changes will need to be made for the bill to provide the strong, science-based
solution to global warming that Americans are seeking.
One major
problem is that the bill would not reduce global warming pollution as quickly
or as deeply – especially in the next 10 years – as the science indicates is
needed to avoid the worst effects of global warming. Since the bill only covers about 80% of total
U.S. global warming emissions, claims that the bill
would reduce our emissions by 70% by 2050 do not tell the whole story.
We look
forward to working with the senators and other members of the committee to
craft a strong response to global warming that Americans can be proud of.
The
science demands decisive action to protect our environment, our economy, and
future generations from global warming.
We can’t settle for less.
For a comparison of the
emission-reduction levels in the draft bill compared with those in the
Sanders-Boxer Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act (S. 309), which has 21
cosponsors, see the chart below.
|
Year
|
Change in total U.S. emissions from 1990 levels
under Sanders-Boxer bill (S. 309)
|
Change in total U.S. emissions from 1990 levels
under Lieberman-Warner draft bill*
|
Change in total U.S. emissions from current (2005)
levels under Sanders-Boxer bill (S. 309)
|
Change in total U.S. emissions from current (2005)
levels under Lieberman-Warner draft bill*
|
|
2020
|
0
|
+8%
|
-15%
|
-8%
|
|
2030
|
-27%
|
-11%
|
-38%
|
-24%
|
|
2040
|
-67%
|
-30%
|
-72%
|
-40%
|
|
2050
|
-80%
|
-48%
|
-83%
|
-56%
|
*Draft
bill covers roughly 79% of total U.S. global warming emissions; chart assumes
that emissions from non-covered sectors remain flat over time, which is an
optimistic assumption given that EIA projects that emissions from these sources
will grow.
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U.S. PIRG is the federation of state
Public Interest Research Groups. State PIRGs are non-profit, non-partisan
public interest advocacy organizations.
