Below is a statement sent out today in response to President Bush's global
warming speech.


For Immediate Release:                        Contact:
June 11, 2001                            David Willett, 202-675-6698


                Bush Delays Action to Fight Global Warming
                Despite science, calls for only more study

Washington, DC:  The Sierra Club today expressed profound disappointment
with President Bush's latest refusal to take meaningful action to curb
global warming. This morning, the President called for more study into
global warming, despite the fact that the world's leading climate
scientists, including a National Academy of Sciences report released last
week, has concluded that global warming is real and that we must take
immediate action.

"The President's approach to global warming is like commissioning a study
on fire while your house burns down," said Carl Pope, Executive Director of
the Sierra Club. "The President should act now to cut global warming
pollution with cleaner cars and power plants, not more delay."

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) has estimated that without
policy changes, U.S. emissions of global warming gases will rise 35 percent
by 2020.

"President Bush's approach of merely studying global warming is
irresponsible and will embarrass the United States in front of the rest of
world," continued Pope.  "We must take steps to curb global warming now,
since delaying action will only make the problem worse."

In January of this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) stated that human populations and the world's ecosystems are
threatened by worsening heat waves, floods, drought, extreme weather and
spreading infectious diseases caused by global warming. The IPCC projected
that the earth's temperature will rise as much as 10.4 degrees F this
century and concluded that human-made global warming pollution has
"contributed substantially to the observed warming over the last 50 years."

Last week the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) released a report
requested by the Bush administration which, "confirmed again the broad
scientific consensus that has emerged over the last decade--that
human-caused climate change is underway and, if ignored could have severe
impacts on natural and managed ecosystems and human systems, such as health
and water resources." (NAS release) The NAS also stated their support for
the findings of the IPCC.  They "strongly affirmed previous IPCC findings
and praised the IPCC for its comprehensive and balanced capture of the
problem." (NAS release)

The United States is the world's number one global warming polluter, with
23 percent of the world's global warming pollution yet only 4 percent of
the world's people. U.S. cars and light trucks alone emit more pollution
than all but four countries (U.S. China, Russia, Japan) . While other
countries must do their fair share to cut their emissions, the U.S. should
take the lead by using available technology to reduce our pollution.

Instead of these sensible cost effective solutions, the President is
proposing more study and voluntary measures. "When it comes to cutting
global warming pollution voluntary measures don't cut it,"  concluded Pope.

Fortunately there are simple, practical steps we can take right now to cut
global warming pollution.

·  The single biggest step we can take to curb global warming is to raise
   automotive miles per gallon standards (mpg) to 40 mpg for cars, SUVs and
   other light trucks.  This would cut carbon dioxide pollution by 600
   million metric tons, and save consumers at least $45 billion each year
   at the gas pump by saving 3 million barrels of oil per day.

·  Replace old power plants with cleaner, efficient plants.  High
   efficiency combined-cycle gas-fired power plants are twice as efficient
   and can be 10 times cleaner than old gas plants.  Sited appropriately,
   these plants would dramatically reduce emissions.

·  Increase use of renewable energy.  A Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS)
   in which 20% of all electricity sold would be derived from appropriately
   sited wind, solar, geothermal, or biomass energy by 2020 would greatly
   reduce our reliance on polluting fossil fuels.

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