On the recordMay 17, 2021
I thank my good friend Mr. Lucas for his kind compliments. It is the best I have heard all day. I thank Ms. Bonamici, the chair of this committee, for bringing this bill to the floor. I am excited about it because the oceans and our waterways are important to our lives. More than anybody recognizes, water is the next big issue. Oceans do cover 76 percent of our globe. In doing so, if they get acidified, then we lose the oceans, not only what it provides to us, but livelihoods to many fishermen in my communities, which is very, very important. I am, very frankly, very excited about this legislation. We have to do more than legislation, though, because the acidification of the ocean, what causes it, we have to address. Some say it is climate change. Let's do that. Let's look at why. I have just been reading a very serious set of articles on e-fuels, which I was unaware were created by capturing CO<INF>2</INF> and making it into another fuel which is cleaner, especially for maritime fleets. I am a mariner, and that would be very, very important because they are one of the more pollutant factors we have, yet they transport world goods. So we have to address that. As we pass this legislation, let's really go forth and make sure not only NOAA has the authority, but make sure they do the job. That is oversight. That is your job, Madam Chairman. That is what we have to do to make sure it is done and address the problem. You talk about your lobster.…
