On the recordMarch 10, 2014
as you have heard here tonight, climate change is real, it is caused by humans, it is happening now, it is solvable, and it is time for Congress to wake up and take action. I want to talk now about an important sector of the U.S. economy and how it is specifically impacted by climate change. I am talking about travel and tourism. It is a major economic driver in this country, representing almost 3 percent of the gross domestic product. It generates nearly $1.5 trillion in economic output and supports nearly 8 million jobs. This sector is critical to my home state of Hawai`i but as chairman of the commerce committee's tourism subcommittee, I am also concerned about the economic impacts climate change could have on this critical industry for the entire Nation. The U.S. welcomed nearly 70 million international arrivals in 2012 who spent almost $130 billion on hotels, restaurants, airline tickets, shopping, attractions, and more. This is significant. As the United States works to meet our national goal of welcoming 100 million international visitors annually by 2021, we must think of how climate change factors into the equation for this economic sector as well as how the industry itself contributes to climate change. Travel and tourism is responsible for about 5 percent of global CO<INF>2</INF> emissions. Transportation generates three quarters of these emissions with the majority coming from air travel.…
