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H
<br />GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
<br />SESSION 2017
<br />HOUSE RESOLUTION 401
<br />Sponsors: Representatives Harrison, Autry, Fisher, and Farmer - Butterfield (Primary
<br />Sponsors).
<br />For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
<br />Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
<br />March 20, 2017
<br />1 A HOUSE RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A STATE GOAL OF ONE HUNDRED PERCENT
<br />2 CLEAN ENERGY BY 2050 AND THE CREATION OF GREEN JOBS.
<br />3 Whereas, since 1880, climate change has increased the global average surface
<br />4 temperature by 1.00 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit); and
<br />5 Whereas, climate change is expected to increasingly impact North Carolina's
<br />6 temperatures, precipitation, and sea level with harmful consequences in coming years; and
<br />7 Whereas, climate change and global average temperature increases are primarily due
<br />8 to human - caused fossil fuels emissions, including coal, oil, and natural gas, according to the
<br />9 United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, National Academy of Sciences,
<br />10 American Meteorological Society, United States Environmental Protection Agency, United
<br />11 States Department of Defense, and numerous other leading scientific, academic, and
<br />12 governmental authorities both in the United States and internationally; and
<br />13 Whereas, a final agreement of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP21),
<br />14 including the United States and a total of 195 nations, was reached in Paris, France, on
<br />15 December 12, 2015, entered into force on November 4, 2016, and stated the aim to "hold the
<br />16 increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial
<br />17 levels and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above
<br />18 preindustrial levels "; and
<br />19 Whereas, scientists have concluded the concentration of carbon dioxide, the leading
<br />20 greenhouse gas, in the Earth's atmosphere is currently and consistently over 400 parts per
<br />21 million (ppm) and will likely stay above this level for the indefinite future for the first time in
<br />22 millions of years; and
<br />23 Whereas, 16 of the 17 hottest years on record have occurred in the 21st century, and
<br />24 2016 is the hottest year on record; and
<br />25 Whereas, an increase in the global average temperature, if not stopped, will have
<br />26 major adverse impacts on both the natural and human -made environments due to longer, more
<br />27 intense heat waves, prolonged droughts, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and more intense
<br />28 and frequent extreme weather events; and
<br />29 Whereas, these physical effects are expected to lead to water scarcity, food
<br />30 insecurity, increasing numbers of refugees, increased poverty, and mass extinctions of species;
<br />31 and
<br />32 Whereas, studies completed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Risky
<br />33 Business Project, Duke University, and others point to the severe economic costs of climate
<br />34 change and continuing use of fossil fuel, estimating billions of dollars a year in costs nationally
<br />35 and trillions globally; and
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