Political Quotes

On the recordDecember 17, 2019
we are rapidly running out of time to protect our future and that of our children and grandchildren from worsening climate upheaval. America ought to be taking every measure available to rein in greenhouse gas emissions from legislative action to legal action, to diplomatic action, to regulatory action, which is going to be a theme of this talk tonight. We are not doing those things, and, frankly, it is because of corruption, plain and simple. Regulatory action, that means enforcing the laws on the books. We have a Clean Air Act that requires the Environmental Protection Agency to stop dangerous pollutants from fouling our air. The EPA has found that greenhouse gases are pollutants under the Clean Air Act, and the Supreme Court has upheld that finding. That means we ought to be regulating methane. Methane is among the most potent of greenhouse gases. When released into the atmosphere, it traps about 30 times more heat than its chemical cousin, carbon dioxide. Oil and gas extraction releases massive methane pollution. In fact, a growing body of research suggests methane pollution from natural gas extraction may completely offset the climate gains of switching from coal to natural gas. To fulfill its duties under the Clean Air Act, as a matter of law, EPA needs to prevent methane pollution. It is the law; it is not optional. But the corrupt Trump EPA won't fight methane pollution.…
Said by
Sheldon Whitehouse
Democratic · Rhode Island

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