Click here to watch Senator Blunt Rochester’s full remarks and exchange with the witnesses.
Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, today participated in a spotlight forum titled, “Mind Over Methane: The No-Brainer Climate, Economic, and Health Solution.” Blunt Rochester and her colleagues, led by U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ranking Member of EPW, shined a light on the public health impacts of increased atmospheric methane, a product of the Trump administration’s attempts to generate energy through fossil fuels.
To watch Blunt Rochester’s full remarks and exchange with the witnesses, click here. Her opening statement can be found below, as delivered:
“Thank you, Ranking Member Whitehouse, not only for holding this important spotlight hearing, but your leadership on behalf of this country and this planet. I also want to thank the panelists for attending today and for your testimony.
“We were talking about our various states, and as many of you may know, Delaware is the lowest mean elevation state in the country. So, we feel the impacts of climate, extreme weather. We have coastal communities, our beautiful beaches, we have farms, we are an ag state, and we also have environmental justice communities that have really suffered the impacts. And that’s why this hearing, ‘Mind over Methane,’ is so important.
“My focus of my questions will be really tailored to the fact that I serve on both the Environment and Public Works Committee, but I am also a member of the HELP committee. And as a member of both of those committees, I don’t think you can talk about health without talking about the environment or talking about environment without talking about health. And methane is also often discussed as a potent greenhouse gas. But what is less often emphasized is the serious public health threat it poses, as you shared, doctor. When methane pollution is released into the atmosphere, it exacerbates asthma, respiratory, and cardiovascular conditions, and increases emergency room visits. This is why today’s discussion goes beyond climate policy. But it’s also about public health, health equity, and economic resilience.”
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Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester represents Delaware in the United States Senate where she serves on the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Environment and Public Works; and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.