Press release - 1 October, 2009
In the face of another flawed climate bill, President Obama must step up, take leadership to create a strong international climate treaty in Copenhagen, Greenpeace said today.
"The Senate bill introduced today falls far short of the minimum emissions reductions scientists say are necessary from a big and wealthy polluter like the US to avoid the worst effects of global warming," said Rolf Skar, of Greenpeace U.S. at the climate talks in Bangkok.
"While the bill's pollution cuts, at 7% by 2020 (at 1990 levels), are meagre, its subsidies and loopholes for corporate polluters are huge," he said.
He said the threat of catastrophic climate change is too severe for President Obama to allow corporate lobbyists to run the show. The coal and oil companies in particular have poured millions into lobbying against climate action - and getting their staff to turn out at rallies across the country.
In the US it is the President who is charged with leading foreign policy and negotiating treaties.
"What we need now is strong leadership from President Obama - he must reject fossil fuel industry attempts to define the strength of the international climate agreement in Copenhagen," he continued. "Obama is the President of the United States - oil and coal industry lobbyists are not."
Greenpeace pointed out that in contrast to the US Senate bill, large emitters in the developing world, including China and India, have made substantial new commitments to climate action in the leadup to the Bangkok negotiations.
"With an historic deadline in Copenhagen just over two months away, President Obama needs to take charge to ensure a fair, science-based, binding global deal is reached in Copenhagen, and to tell the US Congress to get serious about climate action."