The Bush administration is now and always has been committed to cutting greenhouse gas emissions and confronting climate change. President Bush’s concern about climate change is not new and has been a top priority for the president ever since his first year in office.
Beginning in June 2001, President Bush has consistently acknowledged climate change is occurring and humans are contributing to the problem. In his words:
• “We know the surface temperature of the Earth is warming … There is a natural greenhouse effect that contributes to warming … And the National Academy of Sciences indicates that the increase is due in large part to human activity ... The policy challenge is to act in a serious and sensible way, given the limits of our knowledge. While scientific uncertainties remain, we can begin now to address the factors that contribute to climate change.” — June 11, 2001
• “My administration is committed to cutting our nation’s greenhouse gas intensity … by 18 percent over the next 10 years. This will set America on a path to slow the growth of our greenhouse gas emissions and, as science justifies, stop and then reverse the growth of emissions.” — Feb. 14, 2002
• “I believe it is a significant, long-term issue that we’ve got to deal with. And that’s why my government is dealing with it. … And I look forward to discussing this agenda with not only the G8 leaders, but also with the leaders of developing countries, countries like India and China.” — June 29, 2005
• “America is on the verge of technological breakthroughs that will enable us to live our lives less dependent on oil … they will help us to confront the serious challenge of global climate change.” — Jan. 23, 2007 (State of the Union address)
To address this challenge, the president has requested, and Congress has provided, substantial funding for climate-related science, technology, observations, international assistance and incentive programs on the order of $35 billion since 2001. This is far more than any other nation. Since 2001, the administration has devoted approximately $12 billion of this amount to climate change science observations and research. Agencies in this administration developed a 10-year strategic research plan for the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) that was developed in full consultation with the climate science community and endorsed by the National Academy of Sciences.
These responsible policies are working. America’s emissions performance since 2000 is among the best in the world.
According to the International Energy Agency, from 2000 to 2004, as our population increased and our economy grew by nearly 10 percent, U.S. carbon dioxide emissions increased by only 1.7 percent. By comparison, during the same period, European Union carbon dioxide emissions grew by 5 percent, with lower economic growth.
Federally funded scientists have measured the effects of climate change, conducted an abundance of research, published their findings in peer-reviewed journals, and provided numerous lead authors and reviewers for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) fourth assessment report, including co-chairing its working group on the physical science basis of climate change. The first part of this report addressing this subject was approved at a meeting in Paris earlier this year. A high-level U.S. government delegation participated in the meeting, and the administration supported the report upon its release.
The president’s approach to action on climate change engages the private sector to change the relationship between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions. To achieve this change, as he said in 2002, we need to “harness the power of markets, the creativity of entrepreneurs, and draw upon the best scientific research.” Greenhouse gas intensity — how much we emit per unit of economic activity — is a sensitive indicator of the successful introduction of new energy technology.
From 2003 to 2006, the president committed nearly $3 billion annually to climate change technology research, development, and deployment efforts as well as a variety of voluntary partnerships, incentive programs, and grant activities. These programs aim to develop and deploy cleaner, more efficient energy technologies, to reduce, avoid or sequester greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. leads the globe in promoting the production and use of biofuels — consuming more than any other nation last year — and commercial deployment of highly efficient advanced coal technology — moving forward with a multi-billion dollar private-sector commitment to build, in nine states, nine projects that qualified for a billion dollars in new federal tax incentives, with more on the way this year.
Internationally, the president has engaged his G-8 counterparts and other key world leaders to address the serious, long-term challenge of global climate change, emphasizing that energy security, clean energy, and positive action on climate change are closely related and must be addressed together. Since 2001, the U.S. has established 15 bilateral climate partnerships with countries and regional organizations, and the U.S. participates in multiple multilateral climate change initiatives. Of particular importance is the recently established Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, which is a proactive approach to engage developing countries like India and China, which do not have targets under the Kyoto protocol.
In his State of the Union Address this year, the president once again made clear his commitment to confronting climate change. The policies already in place, coupled with an aggressive initiative to cut gasoline consumption by 20 percent in 10 years, have captured the attention and interest of the private sector, which is now investing in new technologies essential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. These policies assure U.S. leadership on climate change by, in the president’s words, “advancing new technologies that will enable us to do two things — strengthen our economy, and at the same time, be better stewards of the environment.”
Marburger is director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Connaughton is chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality. Both are advisers to President Bush on climate change science and policy.
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