As Historic Climate Legislation is Celebrated, Opportunities and Challenges Lie Ahead

Hooded Warbler. Photo: Jesse Gordon/Audubon Photography Awards

WASHINGTON – “Today we celebrate the adoption of the largest climate bill ever passed in U.S. history, and a major step forward to a cleaner future for both people and wildlife,” said Dr. Elizabeth Gray, CEO of the National Audubon Society. “Across every kind of habitat, birds are telling us that climate change is threatening the places they need to survive, and what threatens them also threatens us. Time is of the essence, and the provisions of this bill provide the kind of bold action we need to confront this crisis.”

In a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden, President Biden celebrated the adoption of the Inflation Reduction Act into law. The sweeping bill provides funding for clean energy, climate resilience, agricultural and forestry conservation, environmental justice and other provisions that comprise the largest piece of U.S. federal legislation ever to address climate change.

The bill also includes provisions providing opportunities for additional fossil fuel leasing, with some renewable energy development contingent upon oil and gas leasing being made available on some public lands. 

“We recognize that challenges still remain, and an achievement this large rarely comes without compromise. We are committed to ensuring that this sweeping legislation is implemented in a fair and equitable manner, especially to communities who have historically borne a disproportionate share of negative environmental consequences.”

Two-thirds of North American bird species will be vulnerable to extinction if the rate of global temperature rise continues unabated. The overall provisions of the bill will cut annual U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by about 1 billion metric tons by 2030, which will help drive down carbon emissions by about 42 percent, according to a preliminary study by Princeton University.

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About Audubon
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. State programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners give Audubon an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon believes in a world in which people and wildlife thrive. Learn more at www.audubon.org and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @audubonsociety.