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Statement on the US National Climate Assessment

May 6, 2014

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Schakowsky issued the following statement on the third United States National Climate Assessment, which was released this morning by the Obama Administration:

The third National Climate Assessment – the product of four years of work by the country’s leading scientists and technical experts – is the most comprehensive analysis yet of our changing climate and the risks it poses to human health and the environment. It is both informative and alarming.

Findings include evidence that the U.S. is already experiencing the impacts of climate change: longer and hotter summers, more severe storms, and massive drought and wildfire. If the world continues on its current path, by the end of the century, oceans will rise as much as 4 feet, water shortages will increase rapidly, and the hottest days could be more than 10 degrees hotter. In the Midwest, crop yields will decrease and it will be more difficult and more expensive to put food on the table, while at the same time the Great Lakes ecosystem will change dramatically, causing major fish migrations and an escalation of invasive species.

That’s the bad news in the Assessment. The good news is that we still have time to prevent disaster and protect our planet. The path is clear: increase energy efficiency, reduce emissions of the most harmful toxins, and embrace the clean energy technologies of the future like wind, geothermal, hydro, and solar power. Doing so will not only prevent environmental and economic catastrophe, it will improve our economy and grow jobs. Three times as many jobs are created per $1 spent on renewable energy than on fossil fuel or nuclear energy.

I encourage every member of Congress and every American to visit www.globalchange.gov and take time to explore the site to better understand the challenges we face and the potential we have to change course.

The challenge we face is great, but the opportunities we have are even greater. I am grateful that the President has again focused the nation’s attention on the issue of climate change, and I will continue to work with him at every turn to ensure that we take action to combat the threat and avoid the tragic consequences laid out in the National Climate Assessment.