PCAP - Presidential Climate Action Project

Title 7 Agriculture, Chapter 96 Global Climate Change. 58This chapter establishes the Global Climate Change Program within the U.S. Department ofAgriculture (USDA) as a “focal point for coordinating all issues of climate change.” 59 Thischapter also charges the USDA with a number of responsibilities consistent with the agency’smission, for example, studying the effects of global climate change on agriculture and forestry;the means of mitigating the effects of global climate change on crops of economic significance;and the emissions of methane, nitrous oxide, and hydrocarbons from tropical and temperateforests. 60 Further, the USDA shall establish an office of international forestry and undertakedemonstration projects in urban forestry and biomass energy.B. Executive OrdersThere are five executive orders that explicitly address global warming, climate change or GHGs:1) E.O. 13123, June 3, 1999: Greening the Government through Efficient EnergyManagement.2) E.O. 13134, August 12, 1999: Developing and Promoting Biobased Productsand Bioenergy.3) E.O. 13149, April 12, 2000: Greening the Government through Federal Fleetand Transportation Efficiency.4) E.O. 13423, January 24, 2007: Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy,and Transportation Management.5) E.O. 13432, May 14, 2007: Cooperation Among Agencies in Protecting theEnvironment With Respect to GHG Emissions From Motor Vehicles,Nonroad Vehicles, and Nonroad Engines.Each of these executive orders is substantial in its content. For example, E.O. 13423, 13123 and13249 are comprehensive directives that include a statement of national policy, specific targetsand goals, and specific duties for the relevant agencies to implement the orders. E.O. 13134includes a statement of national policy and undertakes to develop a comprehensive nationalstrategy. E.O. 13432 establishes a national policy and directs the coordination of agency actionsin regard to this policy. Again, these are the executive orders that explicitly address globalwarming, climate change or GHGs. There are numerous other executive orders relevant toclimate change policy, such as executive orders concerning energy efficiency, energy security,energy conservation, alternative sources of energy and the like, but the point here is that foralmost a decade climate change has explicitly been the subject matter of executive orders.58 7 U.S.C. §§ 6701-6711.59 Id. at § 6701(a).60 Id. at § 6702.CEES 12 | P age