All Americans Deserve Access to Clean Air, Clean Water, and A Planet Free From Toxic Pollution

Floor Speech

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Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, the coronavirus pandemic, racial violence, and the climate crisis have all highlighted systemic and pervasive inequalities in our country, especially for Black communities and other people of color. Racial, economic, and climate justice are intrinsically linked.

As a member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, I am pleased to stand with my colleagues this morning to release our climate action plan. It is centered on the principles of justice and equity because all people deserve access to clean air, clean water, and a planet free from toxic pollution.

After more than a year of hearings, round table discussions, and feedback from people and groups across the country, we have a bold, science-based, comprehensive plan to address the climate crisis. It sets our Nation on a path to reach net-zero emissions no later than mid-century and net-negative thereafter. Our plan focuses on the needs of frontline communities, accelerating our transition to a 100 percent clean-energy economy, and opportunities to create good-paying jobs. Climate solutions are economic solutions.

The climate crisis is an existential threat, and we cannot wait to act. In the Pacific Northwest, climate change is already our reality. Raging wildfires each summer result in hazy skies, smoky conditions, and hazardous air quality comparable to some of the most polluted places on the planet. Decreased snowpack in the winter is upending the outdoor recreation industry. Our ocean is absorbing carbon dioxide and becoming more acidic, devastating commercial fisheries. Warmer water temperatures in the Columbia River are further endangering salmon, which are a fundamental part of the identity and culture of northwest Tribes. Droughts and extreme weather jeopardize the livelihoods of our specialty crop farmers who were already struggling to make ends meet. Despite these conditions, there are reasons to remain hopeful.

As I travel across northwest Oregon, I have visited with constituents who are already hard at work to protect our planet. At 46 North Farms near the majestic Oregon coast, Teresa Retzlaff and her CSA members are using dry farming practices to provide sustainable food and beautiful flowers for their community. In Hillsboro, Oregon, First Tech Community Credit Union constructed its headquarters out of cross-laminated timber, which creates an airy and healthy workplace and is an example of how we can reduce emissions with our choice of building materials while helping to revitalize rural communities.

In Astoria, more than 100 people filled a community room on a Friday afternoon to hear from scientists about how the climate crisis is affecting the health of our ocean. TriMet and Portland General Electric launched the region's first battery electric bus powered by 100 percent renewable wind energy.

In Portland, workers at Vigor constructed a massive wave energy buoy that was deployed off the coast of Hawaii to capture the power of our ocean in generating clean energy.

And to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, I joined environment and labor leaders to discuss a green road to recovery that creates good-paying jobs. These examples, and so many more, informed our work on the select committee.

Our climate action plan is a comprehensive road map for Congress to build a healthy, resilient, and just America. By enacting our recommendations, we would achieve net-zero carbon pollution by no later than mid-century, save more than 60,000 lives each year from reduced air pollution, and generate health and climate benefits that would help save close to $8 trillion.

I am also pleased to see many of our recommendations, included in H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act.

As a leader on the Education and Labor Committee and the granddaughter of a coal miner, I know the way we transition to a clean energy economy and support workers is as important as the transition itself.

At a time when more than 47 million workers are unemployed, our recovery package must focus on creating and restoring good-paying jobs. We have the opportunity to incorporate investment in climate resilience and clean energy in the process.

As co-chair of the House Oceans Caucus and the Congressional Estuary Caucus, I am pleased that our climate action plan recognizes the power of the ocean to be part of the solution.

The climate action plan calls for the conservation of at least 30 percent of our ocean by 2030 to help preserve and protect blue carbon ecosystems that can help serve as a natural climate solution by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Our plan provides solutions to protect the planet and make it more resilient for future generations. It will result in communities and an economy that is stronger, healthier, and fairer.

Now, we must turn this roadmap into action.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chair Castor and the select committee staff for their tireless work.

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