‘July Should Be a Wake-Up Call’: Senator Says Biden Must Stop Approving New Fossil Fuel Projects – By Brett Wilkins (Common Dreams) / July 28, 2023
“We are in a climate emergency,” said Oregon Democrat Jeff Merkley. “We can’t take a piecemeal approach to the massive crisis we face.”
Citing the extreme temperatures baking much of the United States during July—which is set to be the hottest month ever recorded on Earth—Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon on Thursday called on President Joe Biden to stop approving new fossil fuel projects and declare a climate emergency.
During his Thursday speech on the heat, Biden asked the Labor Department to increase efforts to protect workers from extreme temperatures and to announce new Interior Department water storage investments in Western states. However, the president did not unveil any new measures to combat the planetary emergency. He didn’t even mention fossil fuels, the main driver of global heating.
“Americans are roasting and suffering under extreme heat and smoke in nearly every corner of our country. In Arizona, people are getting third-degree burns just from falling on the ground, while even East Coast states are experiencing air clogged with smoke from forest fires,” Merkley said in a statement.
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