WASHINGTON, DC – Thursday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), chair of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard, introduced the Climate Change Adaptation Act of 2007. This comprehensive legislation recognizes that the impacts of global warming are already occurring and will continue for the next few decades even if we begin dramatically decreasing our greenhouse gas emissions today.  The bill directs the federal government to create a comprehensive plan for dealing with the consequences of climate change, especially when working together with state and local governments.  

“The unfortunate reality is that even if we were somehow able to stop using fossil fuels today, a certain degree of warming and ocean acidification will still occur over the next two or three decades,” said Cantwell.  “Right now, federal officials do not have the proper tools or guidance on how to take climate change impacts into account as they carry out their responsibilities of managing public resources.  We’re making decisions and spending billions of dollars without taking into account how climate change might impact the efficacy of those long-term decisions.  Planning for the future isn’t just common sense – it’s responsible government.”

Last May, Cantwell held a hearing on the effects of climate change and ocean acidification on living marine resources.  During the hearing, the need for federal legislation on climate adaptation was clear from the testimony of many witnesses.

“Managers who are already experiencing the effects of climate change are virtually handcuffed in their ability to plan ahead for future changes they know are coming,” continued Cantwell. “With limited authority or guidance about whether or how to address climate change, they are uncertain about what actions, if any, they should take. The federal government must stop and think about our future and the impacts of large scale change on our natural resources. Instead of sticking our heads in the sand, we need to do the work now so we’re prepared for our future.”

 

For example, this bill will ensure that federal decision makers take into account how predicted sea level rises might effect a shoreline restoration project, where public infrastructure is sited, or when developing a disaster response plan.

 

At the May hearing, Lara J. Hansen, Chief Scientist of the World Wildlife Fund Climate Change Program, said, “We are at a point now where we need to not only be dealing with adaptation, but we need to be dealing with mitigation as well. Unfortunately, we are currently dealing with neither. There is virtually nothing in process for what we are doing about adaptation, and we will be seeing the effects of climate change on every sector of society.  In fact, I would argue that we will all be affected by climate change, and I think that the slow recover of the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina is an excellent example of the low adaptive capacity of even the United States, a very wealthy country by world comparison.  We need to act now.  We cannot wait and continue to do studies.  We are seeing the changes. Obviously we need to continue to learn as we go, but we cannot wait for all the answers before we decide what it is we are going to do. This problem is already upon us.”

 

Cantwell’s bill will require the president to develop a national strategy for addressing the impact that climate change will have on our natural resources.  It will also specifically require the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to conduct vulnerability assessments on the impacts of climate change on coastal and ocean resources, and to prepare an adaptation plans for such resources.  

 

The bill includes the following provisions:

(1)         identify existing Federal requirements, protocols and capabilities for addressing climate change impacts on Federally managed resources and actions;

(2)         develop measures to improve such capabilities and the utilization of such capabilities;

(3)         develop protocols to integrate climate change impacts into Federal agency actions and policies, consistent with existing authorities;

(4)         address vulnerabilities and priorities identified through the assessments carried out under the Global Change Research Act and this Act;

(5)         establish a mechanism to provide information related to addressing the impacts of climate change to State and local governments and nongovernmental entities

(6)         develop partnerships with State and local governments and nongovernmental entities to support and coordinate implementation of the plan;

(7)         include implementation and funding strategies for short- and long-term actions that may be taken at the national, regional, State and local level; and

(8)         establish a process to develop more detailed agency and department-specific plans.

 

Cantwell’s bill has broad support among the scientific community, environmental groups, states, resource managers, as well as within NOAA.  The bill complements two other Commerce Committee climate change bills – S. 1578, Senator Frank Lautenberg’s (D-NJ) ocean acidification bill which Cantwell is a co-sponsor, and S. 2307, introduced by Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME), to improve the federal government’s climate research and information program.  Cantwell’s bill would direct the federal government to develop plans rulemakings stemming from these two bills and other legislation currently working through Congress.

 

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