Title: Expressing the need for immediate climate action in response to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate.
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
This resolution accepts the findings in the "Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate" published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and affirms that immediate action is needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to protect the ocean and cryosphere.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 589 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 589

  Expressing the need for immediate climate action in response to the 
United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report 
           on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 25, 2019

Ms. Bonamici (for herself, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Huffman, Mr. 
 Lowenthal, Ms. Pingree, Ms. Schakowsky, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. 
Blumenauer, Mr. McNerney, Mr. Pappas, Mr. Levin of Michigan, Mr. Carson 
of Indiana, Mr. Deutch, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Rouda, 
 Mr. Keating, Mr. Swalwell of California, Ms. Brownley of California, 
   Ms. Shalala, Mr. Levin of California, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Case, Mr. 
 Takano, Mrs. Hayes, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Courtney, Ms. Schrier, 
  Mr. Casten of Illinois, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Langevin, Ms. 
    Porter, Mr. Neguse, Mrs. Davis of California, and Mr. Morelle) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
 on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign 
 Affairs, Natural Resources, and Science, Space, and Technology, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the need for immediate climate action in response to the 
United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report 
           on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate.

Whereas every person on the planet benefits from a healthy ocean and a stable 
        cryosphere;
Whereas the ocean covers more than 70 percent of the Earth's surface;
Whereas the cryosphere includes the frozen components of the Earth's system, 
        including snow, glaciers, ice sheets, ice shelves, icebergs, sea ice, 
        and permafrost;
Whereas glaciers, ice sheets, and permanent snow hold approximately 69 percent 
        of Earth's freshwater;
Whereas the ocean generates the oxygen that we breathe, regulates our climate 
        and weather patterns, supplies food, is a source of cultural value, 
        supports tourism and trade, and is an untapped renewable energy 
        resource;
Whereas the ocean and cryosphere support biodiversity and regulate the global 
        exchange of water, energy, and carbon;
Whereas, on September 25, 2019, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on 
        Climate Change (IPCC) released the Special Report on the Ocean and 
        Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC);
Whereas the SROCC is the most comprehensive scientific assessment of the effects 
        of climate change on our ocean and coasts, and polar and mountain 
        ecosystems to date;
Whereas more than 100 scientists from 36 countries produced the SROCC and it was 
        reviewed by thousands of scientific experts from around the world;
Whereas according to the SROCC--

    (1) the ocean has taken up more than 90 percent of excess heat in the 
climate system since 1970 and has warmed as a direct result of 
anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions;

    (2) marine heatwaves have very likely doubled in frequency from 1982 to 
2016 and are very likely to become longer-lasting, more intense, and more 
extensive;

    (3) the rate of ocean warming has more than doubled since 1993;

    (4) the ocean has very likely absorbed up to 30 percent of total 
anthropogenic carbon since the 1980s, causing the ocean to become more 
acidic;

    (5) the ocean is losing oxygen at an unprecedented rate, and oxygen 
loss will very likely emerge over 59 to 80 percent of the ocean surface by 
2031-2050;

    (6) harmful algal blooms have expanded and increased in frequency in 
coastal environments since the 1980s as a result of ocean warming, 
acidification, and oxygen loss;

    (7) in some regions, fish and shellfish stocks are already on the brink 
of collapsing;

    (8) environmental stressors like ocean acidification, oxygen loss, and 
warming ocean temperatures are expected to further compromise the 
abundance, productivity, and food-web interactions of species;

    (9) the decrease in biodiversity, and decline and shifts in 
distribution of fisheries will affect the livelihoods and food-security of 
coastal communities;

    (10) warmer ocean temperatures are fueling extreme weather events;

    (11) currently rare extreme sea level events are expected to occur 
frequently by 2050;

    (12) in the absence of significant adaptation efforts, extreme events 
associated with sea level rise, like erosion, flooding, and salinization, 
are expected to significantly increase;

    (13) nearly 50 percent of coastal wetlands have been lost over the 20th 
century, and 20 to 90 percent of coastal wetlands are projected to be lost 
by 2100 as a result of sea level rise and habitat degradation;

    (14) coastal blue carbon ecosystems can contribute to climate 
mitigation by storing carbon;

    (15) river runoff in snow-dominated and glacier-fed basins are 
projected to change in response to projected snow cover and glacier 
decline;

    (16) glacial and snow meltwater reductions have resulted in reduced 
water supply, declined agriculture productivity, and increased wildfires in 
mountain regions and the Arctic;

    (17) tourism and outdoor recreation activities have been negatively 
affected by the cryosphere decline;

    (18) Arctic sea ice is declining in all months of the year and sea-ice 
free summers are increasingly likely under 2C of global warming;

    (19) Arctic surface air temperatures have likely increased by more than 
double the global average in the last two decades, resulting in more sea 
ice and snow cover loss; and

    (20) widespread thaw and degradation of permafrost is projected to 
occur this century and is anticipated to release tens to hundreds of 
billions of tons of carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere;

Whereas the United States is already facing the consequences of inaction on 
        climate change;
Whereas communities of color, Indigenous communities, and low-income communities 
        often face the disproportionate effects of inaction on climate change;
Whereas reducing greenhouse gas emissions, transitioning to a clean energy 
        economy, and investing in climate adaptation efforts can support good-
        paying jobs;
Whereas, in 2018, the IPCC released a special report titled ``Global Warming of 
        1.5C'' which found that to limit global warming to 1.5C, net global 
        greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to 45 percent below 2010 levels 
        by 2030 and 100 percent below 2010 levels by 2050;
Whereas the United States has a responsibility to enact policies to reduce 
        greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent below 2010 levels no later than 
        2030 and achieve net zero emissions no later than 2050; and
Whereas as Congress enacts policies to put the country on a path to net zero 
        emissions, there is an opportunity for the ocean to be part of the 
        climate solution: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes and accepts the findings of the 
        Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on the 
        Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate;
            (2) commits to supporting ocean-centric solutions to the 
        climate crisis in conjunction with policies to reduce 
        greenhouse gas emissions including--
                    (A) strengthening, restoring, and protecting our 
                wetlands, such as mangroves, tidal salt marshes, and 
                seagrass meadows to store blue carbon;
                    (B) investing in ocean driven renewable energy, 
                including offshore wind, tidal, and wave energy, that 
                is responsibly sited and does not jeopardize the 
                integrity of marine ecosystems;
                    (C) supporting the electrification of the maritime 
                industry and our ports;
                    (D) advancing the exploration of the sequestration 
                potential of the deep sea;
                    (E) permanently safeguarding our coasts from 
                offshore oil and gas drilling;
                    (F) designing Marine Protected Areas that safeguard 
                ecosystems; and
                    (G) strengthening scientific research and 
                monitoring to improve adaptation efforts to changing 
                ocean conditions; and
            (3) affirms that immediate action is needed to reduce 
        greenhouse gas emissions to protect the health of our ocean and 
        the stability of the cryosphere.
                                 <all>