Climate change is real and I know we must take immediate action. Dramatic, destructive weather systems and forest fires have grabbed the attention of our nation and the world, while the impacts of climate change run exponentially wider than that. From species extinction to oceanic ecosystems collapse, communities across America deserve to understand how their region’s forests, water resources, agricultural industries, and native species held dear will be impacted.
Here in Central Washington, we will see more wildfires, earlier growing seasons, reduced snowpack, warmer temperatures in our tributaries, and species extinction. We have the unique opportunity to champion policies that will create new, sustainable, clean energy jobs and grow our economy. As a person of science, I apply evidence-based principles and methods to my evaluation of environmental policy and regulation, and I insist that our government agencies do the same. As a pediatrician who understands the negative impacts of polluted water and air on the health of our children, I will fight efforts to reduce or eliminate clean air and clean water protections.
- In Congress, I secured federal funding to maintain flood risk management, increase municipal and industrial water supply to Tacoma Public Utility, and reopen miles of critical salmon and steelhead habitat, for the Howard Hanson Dam.
- I introduced the Legacy Roads and Trails bill, to maintain roads and trails on U.S Forest Service lands to improve water quality and protect endangered species on public land.
- I cosponsored legislation passed into law to ensure a secure water supply for Central Washington during drought years that was a model for water conservation across the country.
- I co-sponsored the permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which will help protect our environment in perpetuity.
- I co-sponsored the Climate Action Now Act, which would keep the United States in the Paris Climate Accords.
- I introduced a successful amendment to the Climate Action Now Act that recognizes farm conservation practices as a strategy to address climate change.
- I will continue to champion access to our public lands, and responsible and effective action to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change impacts, and will continue to work to focus resources on people most dramatically affected by climate change.
