State, Regional and Local Perspectives on Global Warming
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S. HRG. 110–1026 STATE, REGIONAL AND LOCAL PERSPECTIVES ON GLOBAL WARMING HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION MARCH 1, 2007 Printed for the use of the Committee on Environment and Public Works ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress.senate U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 53–827 PDF WASHINGTON : 2010 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION BARBARA BOXER, California, Chairman MAX BAUCUS, Montana JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut JOHN W. WARNER, Virginia THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey DAVID VITTER, Louisiana BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland LARRY E. CRAIG, Idaho BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri BETTINA POIRIER, Majority Staff Director and Chief Counsel ANDREW WHEELER, Minority Staff Director (II) CONTENTS Page MARCH 1, 2007 OPENING STATEMENTS Boxer, Hon. Barbara, U.S. Senator from the State of California ........................ 1 Inhofe, Hon. James M., U.S. Senator from the State of Oklahoma .................... 5 Lautenberg, Hon. Frank R., U.S. Senator from the State of New Jersey ........... 42 Voinovich, Hon. George V., U.S. Senator from the State of Ohio ........................ 44 Klobuchar, Hon. Amy, U.S. Senator from the State of Minnesota ...................... 46 Thomas, Hon. Craig, U.S. Senator from the State of Wyoming .......................... 48 Sanders, Hon. Bernard, U.S. Senator from the State of Vermont ....................... 49 Bond, Hon. Christopher S., U.S. Senator from the State of Missouri ................. 50 Clinton, Hon. Hillary Rodham, U.S. Senator from the State of New York ........ 52 Craig, Hon. Larry E., U.S. Senator from the State of Idaho ............................... 53 Cardin, Hon. Benjamin L., U.S. Senator from the State of Maryland, prepared statement .............................................................................................................. 138 Lieberman, Hon. Joseph I., U.S. Senator from the State of Connecticut, pre- pared statement ................................................................................................... 147 WITNESSES Corzine, Hon. Jon S., Governor, State of New Jersey .......................................... 54 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 56 Responses to additional questions from: Senator Thomas ......................................................................................... 59 Senator Inhofe ........................................................................................... 60 Perata, Hon. Don, President Pro Tem, California State Senate .......................... 80 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 81 Nun˜ ez, Hon. Fabian, speaker, California State Assembly ................................... 82 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 84 Response to additional questions from Senator Inhofe ................................. 104 Adkins, Dennis, chairman, House Committee on Energy and Technology, Oklahoma State House ........................................................................................ 104 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 106 Harvey, Hon. Ted, Senator, Colorado State Senate .............................................. 108 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 109 Nickels, Hon. Greg, Mayor, City of Seattle, WA ................................................... 110 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 112 Responses to additional questions from: Senator Cardin .......................................................................................... 124 Senator Inhofe ........................................................................................... 124 Cownie, Hon. Frank, Mayor, City of Des Moines, IA ........................................... 125 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 126 Homrighausen, Hon. Richard P., Mayor, City of Dover, OH ............................... 128 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 130 Responses to additional questions from Senator Inhofe ............................... 133 ADDITIONAL MATERIAL Reports: EPA, Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990– 2004, April 15, 2006 ...................................................................................... 68 (III) IV Page —Continued United Nations Foundation, The Scientific Research Society, Confronting Climate Change: Avoiding the Unmanageable and Managing the Un- avoidable, February 2007 .............................................................................30–41 Letters from: Schwarzenegger, Arnold .................................................................................. 3 California Economists ...................................................................................... 85 Bruton, John, Ambassador, European Union, Delegation of the European Commission ................................................................................................... 11 Lists: Bipartisan Elected Officials ............................................................................. 9 Climate Momentum Shifting: Prominent Scientists Reverse Belief in Man-made Global Warming-Now Skeptic ................................................... 20–28 Article, Bay Journal, December 2004 .................................................................... 140 STATE, REGIONAL AND LOCAL PERSPECTIVES ON GLOBAL WARMING THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2007 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m. in room 406, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Barbara A. Boxer (chairman of the committee) presiding. Present: Senators Boxer, Inhofe, Voinovich, Lautenberg, Clinton, Cardin, Sanders, Klobuchar, Whitehouse, Craig, Thomas and Bond. STATEMENT OF HON. BARBARA BOXER, U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA Senator BOXER. Good morning. The committee will come to order. Today’s hearing is about State, regional and local approaches to global warming. We have wonderful witnesses today who can real- ly, I think, help us as we grapple with these issues. I do want to welcome all of our witnesses, including the good Governor, former Senator Jon Corzine, a former member of this committee. I also particularly want to welcome the two members of the Cali- fornia State legislature. I never know in which order to introduce you, because to me you are partners and you are equals. I am very proud that Don Perata is here, President pro tem of the California State Senate and Speaker of the Assembly, Mr. Fabian Nun˜ ez. I also want to welcome Mayor Nickels, from Seattle, and the Mayor of Des Moines, IA, Frank Cownie. In addition, I want to wel- come State Representative Dennis Adkins of Oklahoma. Welcome, sir. State Senator Ted Harvey of Colorado, welcome, sir. And Mayor Richard Homrighausen of Dover, OH. Are you here? He is on the way. Let me say that we will have a more formal introduction of Gov- ernor Corzine by Senator Lautenberg and hopefully by Senator Menendez if he arrives on time. Every day we learn more about how global warming is threat- ening the well-being of the plant. Just a few weeks ago, the Inter- Governmental Panel on Climate Change released its report, which makes it clear that global warming is happening now and there is a 90 percent certainty humans are causing most of the warming. Just yesterday, I was at a press conference with Senator Bingaman and former Senator Tim Worth to discuss this latest report Con- fronting Climate Change: Avoiding the Unmanageable and Man- aging the Unavoidable. It is another United Nations report by the (1) 2 United Nations Foundation, the Scientific Research Society. So yet more and more studies are coming in on this. The warming could have enormous consequences for mankind. Left unchecked, global warming will lead to increased extreme weather events, to sea level rises, to more floods and hurricanes and to change in our weather patterns that could reduce our water supplies. These are but a few of the effects that global warming will have on our States and cities in the years to come unless we act. Today’s hearing is about those States, regions and cities that al- ready recognize these facts and have taken strong, bipartisan ac- tion to help stop global warming. In my opinion, they are leading the way for the rest of the Nation. They understand what is at stake for our future and for our grandkids and their kids. They are sending us a signal that we must heed. I want to show you a