Reply from Senator Ed Markey

Below is a reply received from Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey.

Massachusetts should be proud they elected a forward-thinking Senator to represent them!

EDWARD J. MARKEY MASSACHUSETTS		218 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON, DC 20510 (202) 224-2742
	United States Senate June 5, 2014

 

Thank you for contacting me about the wildfires and the Endangered Species Act. It was good to hear from you.

I share your concern and I have long worked to protect the environment, halt the advancement of climate change and to create new jobs in our clean energy economy.

While I serving in the House of Representatives, I was the Ranking Member on the Natural Resources Committee and a senior member of the Energy and Commerce Committee where I spearheaded attempts to move investment dollars from over-funded nuclear and fossil fuel programs to greatly-needed clean energy research and development programs. I have also supported numerous projects to promote these 21st century growth industries, which include the nation's first offshore wind power project off of Cape Cod. In the 111th Congress, I co-authored The American Clean Energy and Security Act (H.R. 2454), popularly referred to as "the Waxman-Markey Bill," the first and only comprehensive climate and energy bill ever to pass a chamber of Congress. The bill would have reduced U.S. carbon pollution by 17 percent from 2005 levels and required 20 percent of our electricity to come from renewable sources by 2020.

On October 31, 2013, I introduced the American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act (S. 1627), as the first bill I proposed in the U.S. Senate. The American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act would create huge benefits for consumers, create jobs, and protect the environment by requiring electric utilities to obtain a minimum of 25 percent of their electricity from renewable sources like wind, solar, hydro, geothermal, and biomass by 2025. The bill also requires electric and natural gas utilities to implement energy efficiency programs that would save the equivalent of 15 percent and 10 percent of sales, respectively, by 2025. The American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act would complement existing state programs and ensure that the United States is not left behind by the 118 other nations that already have clean energy targets in place.

The backbone of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has always been its commitment to use science to protect species from extinction. Preventing extinction and helping species to recover is not just the right thing to do, it is the economically sensible thing to do. Biodiversity of plants, fish and wildlife provide us with important benefits from lifesaving drugs to clean drinking water. In Massachusetts, outdoor, wildlife and coastal tourism delivers significant benefits our state economy and supports thousands of jobs. Under the ESA, iconic species such as the bald eagle, black-footed ferret, and American crocodile have recovered and continue to thrive.

As a result of climate change, record high temperatures, and insect infestations wildfires in our western states are burning more frequently and with greater intensity than we have ever seen before. That is why, while serving in the House, I introduced the Depleting Risk from Insect infestation, Soil erosion and Catastrophic fire Act, (H.R. 5960). My bill would help to address the scourge of bark beetle infestations on western forests and help to speed up the contracting process to remove dying or dead trees, which serve as potential kindling for forest fires. In the Senate, I will continue to monitor the protection of the whitebark pine under the ESA. I will also continue to work in a bipartisan manner to address the risks of climate change and dangerous wildfires and will fight for legislation that will create new jobs in the clean energy economy, and protect the health of citizens and the environment.

Thank you again for contacting me about this issue. If I can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me. To sign up for my newsletter, visit http://www.markey.senate.gov/newsletter. You can also follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Sincerely,

Edward J. Markey
United States Senator