Climate Change and the Environment

The leaders of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC), including Co-Chairs Reps. Doris Matsui, Mike Quigley, and Paul Tonko, Vice Chairs Reps. Don Beyer, Matt Cartwright, Sean Casten, Chellie Pingree, and Katie Porter, and Chair Emeritus Rep. Gerry Connolly, released the following statement in response to the… Read more »

Originally published in: Politico As Congress continues to struggle with thorny energy issues like permitting and grid reliability, one groundbreaking source of energy once known for “always being 30 years away” is uniting lawmakers. Fusion is having a moment. Leaders of the Congressional Fusion Caucus are attracting powerful lawmakers from both parties to ensure that the zero-carbon… Read more »

Originally published in: Politico An increasing number of Republicans and Democrats are rallying behind a clean energy source — albeit one that is likely decades away. But it’s unclear if that growing support for nuclear fusion will translate into funding or progress on a technology that’s long been known for “always being 30 years away,” writes Nico Portuondo. Since its founding… Read more »

Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate, and Nuclear Safety, Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), founder and co-chair of the Senate AI Caucus and a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Representative Anna Eshoo (CA-16), co-chair of the House AI Caucus, and Representative Don Beyer… Read more »

U.S. Representative Don Beyer (D-VA) and Congresswoman Jenniffer González-Colón (R-PR-AL) today introduced the National Oceans and Coastal Security Improvements Act. The bill would support coastal communities’ ability to prepare for and respond to a variety of coastal threats, including flooding, extreme weather events, climate hazards and changing ocean conditions by improving coastal… Read more »

U.S. Representatives Don Beyer (D-VA), Mike Lawler (R-NY), and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) today introduced the Innovative Practices for Soil Health Act, bipartisan legislation to improve soil health on farms and support sustainable alternatives to annual agriculture by improving United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation programs to ensure they are better able to support… Read more »

The 2023 film Oppenheimer conjures a dramatic story of how the top-secret Manhattan Project harnessed the power of nuclear fission for the controversial weapon that ended World War II. At the dawn of 2024, we are poised to harness the power of a different type of transformative energy — nuclear fusion. Fusion energy is the energy of our sun and the stars. It is the source of all other… Read more »

Originally published in: The Hill Fifty years ago, Republicans and Democrats in both chambers came together in an inspirational show of bipartisanship to pass one of our nation’s most respected and successful conservation laws: the Endangered Species Act. It is a law that memorializes our nation’s responsibility to be good stewards of our natural heritage and to protect it for future… Read more »

Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) introduced legislation to make American companies more competitive in the global marketplace and address major sources of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions by creating a carbon border adjustment. The legislation is cosponsored by Representatives Don Beyer (VA-08), Kathy Castor (FL-14), and Ami Bera (CA-06) and… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), founder and co-chair of the bipartisan Fusion Energy Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives, today hailed Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s announcement of a U.S. international engagement plan for fusion energy at COP28. Beyer said: “I’m thrilled that the U.S. delegation brought fusion to the global stage at COP28. This strategic plan would… Read more »