Congresswoman Doris Matsui Applauds EPA Finding That Global Warming Threatens Public Health and Welfare
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, April 17, 2009
CONTACT: Mara Lee
(202) 225-7163
Scientific Review Recognizing Serious Threats Posed by Climate Change Are Long-Overdue
Sacramento, CA - Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-05) issued the following statement today in response to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) scientific research findings that global warming and the following six greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide; methane; nitrous oxide; hydrofluorocarbons; perfluorocarbons; and sulfur hexafluoride threatens our public health and public welfare: "The EPA today announced a long-overdue finding that global warming threatens both public health and public welfare. Based on strong and rigorous scientific review, the EPA's judgment that greenhouse gas emissions are worsening crop failures, creating more intense heat waves, and contributing to severe coastal storms is a much-needed step toward creating effective energy and environmental policies. This finding is proof that global warming is the central environmental challenge of our time, one that poses a distinct threat to our very way of life and that must be addressed as soon and as comprehensively as possible.
"Unfortunately, the Bush Administration neglected to deal with global warming's negative effects on public health and the environment. The issuance of today's EPA finding is a welcome step in a new direction on this vital environmental and public health issue. It also underscores what I hear every day in the Energy and Commerce Committee, and what people in Sacramento already know: we must act swiftly to reduce our carbon emissions, create jobs in the renewable energy sector, and invest in the clean energy economy of the future. I applaud the EPA and the Obama administration for moving so quickly to do so, and look forward to working with them and with my colleagues in Congress to fight global warming and protect our citizens from the consequences it poses."
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