Washington, D.C. - In honor of Earth Day, which takes place tomorrow, Congressman David Price (NC-04) released the following statement regarding our responsibility to be green.  He further called on the Bush Administration to work with Congress to address one of the most pressing issues of our time – climate change.

“On the 37th anniversary of the first Earth Day, we should take the opportunity to evaluate our stewardship of the land and its resources, which we have a duty to preserve for future generations.  Indeed, we have a moral obligation to see to it that the air, water, land and climate we leave to our children is not spoiled due to lack of foresight or initiative by the current generation.

“While much has been done to preserve our environment through the ingenuity and creativity of individuals in government, the private and nonprofit sectors, and in our research institutions, the challenges we face today remain grave and sobering.  Global climate change has been staring us in the eyes for too many years while the leadership in the White House and in Congress has refused to take serious action to curb our greenhouse gas emissions. 

“The evidence continues to accumulate, revealing to us the dire consequences of our continued inaction.  In February, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a network of leading climate scientists sponsored by participating countries including the U.S., concluded for the first time that global warming is ‘unequivocal’ and that human activity is its main driver.  Last month, the IPCC further revealed how species, water supplies, ice sheets and regional climate conditions are already responding to the global buildup of heat, which portends even starker consequences for the coming decades.  We can no longer deny the seriousness of climate change, nor can we afford to neglect our moral responsibility to act now.

“Fortunately, with the shift to a Democratic Congress, we are finally seeing the beginnings of a proactive and coherent national strategy to combat climate change.  The House has appointed a Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, which will play a key role in developing policy initiatives to assure we make real progress over the next two years.  As one of our first orders of business this year, we also passed legislation to roll back government subsidies for the oil and gas industries and instead invest in clean, alternative energy sources.  And the House will produce legislation by mid-summer that will represent a starting point on a new energy policy for America – one that will take a significant step to reduce our energy dependence and address global warming. 

“Our efforts to exercise environmental stewardship will require more cooperation from the White House than we have seen thus far.  Therefore, I call upon the President to work with us in Congress to implement real solutions to these challenges that simply cannot be ignored any longer.  We all share a stake in the future of our planet, and likewise, we all share a duty to ensure its preservation.”