Federal Climate Change Legislation Safeguarding Nature For People and Wildlife
John KostyackExecutive Director, Wildlife Conservation and
Global WarmingJune 11, 2009
Photo: Larry Master
Arctic summer sea ice, Sept. 2007. Source: NASA
Global Warming is Disrupting Ecosystems in Polar Regions
Mountain Pine Beetle Damage, ColoradoPhoto: Allen L. ThorntonOld Growth Tree Mortality
van Mantgem
et al. (2009)
... and in Temperate Zones
A Problem of Too Little Water...
Blackwater
National Wildlife Refuge
... and Too Much Water
Hurricane Katrina
A Two-Part Agenda for Confronting Global Warming
•
Mitigation: Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; promoting a clean energy economy
•
Adaptation: Safeguarding people and wildlife from the impacts of global warming
How Federal Cap-and-Trade Bills Conserve Natural Resources Threatened
by Climate Change•
GHG Emissions Reductions
–
Shifts to Low- Carbon
Technologies–
Carbon Sequestered on Land
•
Dedicated Funding for Natural Resources Adaptation
America’s Clean Energy Security (ACES) Act
•
Cap Produces 17% GHG Reductions from 2005 Levels by 2020
•
U.S. Natural Resources Adaptation Receives Share of Allowance Value
•
U.S Forest / Ag Carbon Sequestration Projects May Be Used to Offset Emissions
Estimated Natural Resources Adaptation Funding under ACES
Share of Allowance Value: 2012 –
2021: 1 percent
2022 –
2026: 2 percent2027 –
2050: 4 percent
Estimated Funding Levels
(based on EPA models)•
2012:
$550 million
•
2020: $850 million•
2025: $1.88 billion
•
2030: $4.07 billionAvg. Annual Funding Through 2030: $1.7 billion (EPA) to
$2.5 billion (CBO)
How ACES Would Transform How ACES Would Transform ConservationConservation
Eligibility for Large-Scale Adaptation Funding Dependent Upon:
#1: Helping Species, Habitats, Ecosystems, Ecological Processes Survive Climate Change & Ocean Acidification
#2: Consistent with Federal Agency or State Natural Resources Adaptation Plan
Agencies Supported with ACES Funds: Agencies Supported with ACES Funds: Leveraging Opportunities Leveraging Opportunities
••
DOI (wildlife/land/water):DOI (wildlife/land/water):
17%17%
••
DOI (cooperative grants):DOI (cooperative grants):
5%5%
••
DOI (LWCF DOI (LWCF ––
federal):federal):
4%4%
••
DOI (LWCF DOI (LWCF ––
state/tribal):state/tribal):
2%2%
••
USFS (USFS (natnat’’ll
forest/grasslands): forest/grasslands): 5 %5 %
••
USFS (LWCF USFS (LWCF ––
federal):federal):
4%4%
••
USFS (LWCF USFS (LWCF ––
state/tribal):state/tribal):
2% 2%
••
EPA (aEPA (aquatic ecosystems)::
7.5%7.5%
••
Corps (aCorps (aquatic ecosystems): : 5%5%••
NOAA (cNOAA (coastal/estuarine/marine)::
7%7%
••
State Fish and Wildlife AgenciesState Fish and Wildlife Agencies
32.5%32.5%
••
State Coastal AgenciesState Coastal Agencies
6%6%
••
Tribes (Tribal Wildlife Grants): Tribes (Tribal Wildlife Grants): 3%3%
An Historic Opportunity
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Pending climate change legislation presents an historic opportunity to secure large-scale dedicated funding for U.S. land, water and wildlife conservation
•
$1B to $6B potentially available each year using adaptation and sequestration provisions
•
Federal and state adaptation programs, with guaranteed large-scale funding, could drive much of conservation in the future
Questions?