Medhini Kumar, medhini.kumar@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC - Today, the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee will hold a legislative hearing on the Public Lands and Waters Climate Leadership Act. This bill was introduced last week by Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and other members of the Committee.
Notably, the bill includes a provision to prevent new leasing and fossil fuel permitting and infrastructure until DOI and the USFS show that lifecycle emissions from additional oil, gas, and coal development are consistent with the following climate goals from the Biden administration:
- reduce net U.S. GHG emissions by 50-52 percent from 2005 levels by 2030;
- achieve 100 percent carbon-free U.S. electricity by 2035; and
- achieve net-zero emissions across the entire U.S. economy by 2050.
Additionally, it includes the development and administering of a climate screening tool to analyze whether the lifecycle emissions of individual agency actions are consistent with the most recently published emissions reduction strategy and the Biden administration’s climate targets.
In anticipation, Athan Manuel, Director of the Sierra Club's Lands Protection Program, issued the following statement:
“Fossil fuel companies can no longer be given a carte blanche to lease on public lands. The research shows this kind of drilling and mining directly contributes to increased carbon emissions and pollution, harming our communities’ health and pulling us away from achieving our climate goals. We welcome Chair Raúl M. Grijalva’s bill and the path it sets forward for a collaborative, science-based approach to managing our public lands.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.