|
February 15, 2005
Climate Change Treaty Takes Effect
United States Remains Absent from the Treaty
Washington, DC – Citizens for Global Solutions
welcomes the Kyoto Protocol, which comes into effect today, and calls on the
United States government to re-engage with the international community on the
important issue of climate change. “The Bush Administration’s unhappiness with
the specifics of the Kyoto Protocol is not sufficient justification for its
decision to walk away from any discussion on climate change,” notes Charles J.
Brown, President and CEO of Citizens for Global Solutions. “By refusing to
address this fundamental challenge, America risks abandoning its historic role
as a leader and advocate for international cooperation.”
Scientific consensus on the risks posed by climate change has emerged, which
adds additional urgency to this issue. Carbon dioxide emissions from
industrialized nations are altering climate and weather patterns in ways that
may dramatically change and perhaps threaten our lifestyle, livelihood, and even
our lives. A recent gathering of environmental experts in the United Kingdom,
confirmed that climate change is contributing to massive displacement and
migration from coastal areas around the world, extreme weather, and the eventual
diminishment of agricultural productivity in inland areas like the Midwestern
United States.
The Kyoto Protocol, which brought 135 nations together around the consensus of
limiting carbon dioxide emissions, was the initial, international response to
this global threat. Yet nearly a decade after U.S. negotiators and President
Clinton helped craft the Protocol – and the U.S. Senate subsequently opposed its
ratification – the United States remains opposed to caps on carbon dioxide
emissions. With the Protocol set to take effect today, and in light of recent
scientific studies and upcoming G8 environmental minister meetings, it is time
for the Bush Administration to reengage with the world on climate change.
The U.S. is currently the single greatest source of carbon dioxide pollution,
accounting for approximately 24 percent of the global total. Key U.S. allies
have strongly urged President Bush to support international efforts to curb this
environmental hazard. The President should take a cue from British Prime
Minister Tony Blair, who has made addressing climate change a major objective of
Britain’s foreign policy. In addition, Congress should enact national
legislation, such as last session’s McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship Act,
which will allow the U.S. to join global efforts to reduce carbon emissions
through a market-driven approach.
“The President should support a coordinated, comprehensive, and long-range
national policy to advance U.S. leadership in protecting the global
environment,” summarized Brown. “Climate change is a global problem and no
amount of wishful thinking will keep it outside from affecting us. We should be
leading, not fighting the international effort to address this fundamental
challenge.”
Citizens for Global Solutions is a broad-based, non-partisan membership
organization that works to build peace, justice and freedom in a
democratically-governed world. We educate Americans about our global
interdependence, communicate with public officials, and develop proposals to
reform and strengthen international institutions.
|
Contact:
Sam Stein
Communications Associate
202 546 3950 ext 123
Charles J. Brown
President & CEO
202 546 3950 ext115
Scott Paul
Program Associate
202 546 3950 ext 116
|
