Representative Levin Participates in First Congressional Hearing on Climate Change in Ten Years
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Click here to watch Representative Levin’s full remarks.
Washington, D.C. – Today, as a member of the House Natural Resources Committee, U.S. Representative Mike Levin (D-CA) participated in the first Congressional hearing on climate change in ten years. Representative Levin highlighted the importance of acting on climate change and questioned an environmental expert on the importance of protecting ecosystems that have been impacted by climate change.
Representative Levin opened by saying, “Let’s cut to the chase. The overwhelming scientific consensus has left no doubt – no doubt – that we are facing a climate crisis, and it’s long past time to stop undermining science, and evidence. The report that we saw this morning from NOAA and NASA shows that the five warmest years recorded since 1880 are the last five years. This isn’t that hard to figure out. Now must be the time to accept reality. This is the reality and we’ve got to begin focusing on solutions.”
“We must not wait to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy, or energy efficient buildings, or electrify our transportation infrastructure,” added Representative Levin. “I hope we can put politics aside even for just a moment and focus instead on science and energy and our future. I’ve got two young children at home, and this is about leaving the planet better for them than how I found it.”
He asked Dr. Kim Cobb, a Professor at Georgia Institute of Technology’s School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, why the preservation of biodiversity is so important for our resiliency to climate change and what steps the committee can take. Dr. Cobb said, “diversity of species is critical to the function of ecosystems and in turn those ecosystem services that we rely on. We might turn to the functioning of coastal ecosystems and recognize the importance of functioning ecosystems to provide fisherman with livelihoods and many other kinds of tourist-related services as well. And so this has a distinct value to Americans – that has been shown again, and again, and again.”
In addition to his position on the House Natural Resources Committee, Representative Levin serves as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Environment, Public Lands, and Water Task Force, and as a member of the Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC). As a longtime clean energy and environmental advocate, Levin will continue to focus on combatting climate change and protecting the environment. He cosponsored legislation that will ban future offshore oil and gas drilling leases that threaten our water and marine life, and he was one of the first Members of Congress to endorse the Green New Deal.
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