As COP23 Closes, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin Joins Senate Colleagues to Reaffirm Support for Paris Climate Agreement

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the United Nations 23rd Conference of the Parties wraps up in Bonn, Germany, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin joined a Senate Resolution, led by Senators Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR), expressing U.S. support for the Paris climate agreement. The resolution highlights that fact that, despite President Donald Trump’s intention to withdraw from the historic climate accord, the United States has experienced emissions reductions during a period of economic growth, and that state and local governments are committing to clean energy deployment that will help ensure the United States can meet its climate goals.

“There is no doubt that global climate change poses a growing threat to our planet, our country, our Great Lakes and Wisconsin,” said Senator Baldwin. “Turning our back on the world and backing out of the Paris Agreement is bad for our environment and bad for our economy in Wisconsin. The U.S. must show strong leadership on climate change, reaffirm our commitment to future generations and take action to address this challenge.”

The resolution also points to the massive job growth potential from clean energy, with more than 2.5 million people in the United States already working in industries such as wind, solar and energy efficiency in all 50 States. As recently as this week, Virginia and New Jersey have taken steps or signaled their intention to join the Northeast Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the successful market-based system that sets a cap on carbon emissions from the electric sector.
 
A copy of the Senate resolution can be found here.
 
In addition to Senator Baldwin, other Senators co-sponsoring the resolution include Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and Jack Reed (D-RI).

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