Let me begin, if I might, Mr. Chairman, by reviewing the international context in which we now confront the issue of global warming.

While concern about human intervention in the Earth's natural climate system has existed for some time, global warming has emerged rapidly in recent years as a powerful foreign policy and diplomatic issue. Driving this process have been advances in the scientific basis for concern.

As our understanding of the atmosphere has improved, we become more aware of how our actions affect it. It is clear that human activities are increasing atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide.

While there are uncertainties about the magnitude, timing, and regional patterns of greenhouse gas concentrations, there is sound scientific evidence that the rate of climate change in the next century would exceed any natural changes that have occurred in the last 10,000 years.

There is also evidence that the Earth would be warmer than it has been in millions of years. Further, the change in atmospheric composition will persist for decades and possibly centuries because of the long atmospheric lifetime of some of these greenhouse gases. Last year, the international committee acknowledged this scientific concern and took the first steps to address this significant challenge for the world. More than 150 nations signed a Framework Convention on Climate Change at the Earth Summit last June and to date it has been signed by more than 160 countries. The United States along with 16 other nations have already ratified the treaty.

As you on this committee are aware, Mr. Chairman, the Climate Convention was the subject of considerable discussion and debate in 1992. Let me take a moment to discuss specifically what is in the treaty.

The Climate Convention's ultimate objective is to, in its words: "Achieve, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention, stabilization of the greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level could be achieved within a timeframe sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner."

This is a major undefined challenge perhaps requiring massive reductions in emissions. As a first step to agreeing to the international action required, the Convention set forth a series of commitments in Article 4. While the language of these commitments is rather confusing at times, let me quote the critical lines of paragraph 2 (a) and (b) of this article.

Article 4.2(A) states, "Parties shall adopt national policies and take corresponding measures on the mitigation of climate change by limiting. anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases and protecting and enhancing... greenhouse gas sinks and reservoirs. These policies and measures will demonstrate that developed countries are taking the lead in modifying longer-term trends in anthropogenic emissions consistent with the objectives of the Convention,

recognizing that the return by the end of the present decade to earlier levels of anthropogenic emissions . . . would contribute to such modification...

Article 4.2(B) goes on to say, "In order to promote progress to this end, each of these parties shall communicate . . . detailed information on its policies and measures referred to in subparagraph (a) above, as well as its resulting projected anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases. . . with the aim of returning individually or jointly to their 1990 levels these anthropogenic emissions..

While the language contained in these paragraphs is nonbinding in terms of emissions reduction requirements, the intent of the negotiators was to have countries move toward the Convention's ultimate objective through the preparation of their inventories of net greenhouse gas emissions including both sources and sinks of all greenhouse gases and the adoption by developed countries of national policies and measures to mitigate climate change and limit greenhouse gas emissions.

Furthermore, the Convention calls for developed countries to provide resources to help developing countries meet their obligations under the Convention. And, finally, it calls for countries to report on the action they are taking to meet these commitments.

The Conference of the Parties, which the United States anticipates will meet for the first time in mid-1995, will review all of these reports and the adequacy of the commitments under the Convention. Subsequent reviews will take place at regular intervals with the second review coming no later than December 1998.

Since assuming office, President Clinton has directed the administration to conduct a broad review of international environmental concerns including global climate change. Through this process, the President has determined that the United States should provide leadership to help guard against undesirable global climate change. President Clinton clearly set forth the direction of our climate policy in his Earth Day speech. He said, quote, "We must take the lead in addressing the challenge of global warming that could make our planet and its climate less hospitable and more hostile to human life. Today-said President Clinton-I reaffirm my personal, and announce our Nation's commitment, to reducing our emissions of greenhouse gases to their 1990 levels by the year 2000.

"I am instructing my administration to produce a cost-effective plan by August that can continue the trend of reduced emissions. This must be a clarion call, not for more bureaucracy or regulation or unnecessary costs but, instead, for American ingenuity and creativity to produce the best and most energy-efficient technology." The administration is committed to seeing the Convention promptly implemented and, if necessary, strengthened.

To this end, the administration is taking a two-pronged approach: a domestic effort to reduce emissions and enhance sinks of greenhouse gases and an international effort including working to implement the Convention, and to support developing countries and countries moving toward free market economies, in meeting its goals.

To realize the domestic requirements of the President's commitment, preparations have begun to identify a plan to identify steps we can take to return U.S. emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2000. This will be the focus of our efforts in developing the August Plan.

Under the Climate Conventions Article 12, developed country parties must report on their actions within 6 months of the Convention's entry into force, which is expected by late 1994. The August Plan will be the cornerstone of that report, but we anticipate that the next full version of the U.S. National Action Plan will be developed after August in time to meet our Convention commitment.

In developing the August Plan, the administration intends to identify and pursue what we believe are numerous cost-effective actions which may bring us closer to our commitment of returning U.S. emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2000. The government has received a host of these kinds of measures as part of the public comment period established for the Bush administration draft Action Plan issued last December.

But these measures alone may not be enough to meet the longerterm goal of continuing the downward trend in emissions. If we are to accomplish that, we will need to look more broadly at a wide array of actions. More importantly, we will need to establish a framework for identifying new options for our action agenda as we come to grips with the long-term nature of addressing global warming. As we do so, we will need to identify those actions that are most cost-effective.

Shortly, the administration will announce how we will develop the plan to fulfill the President's commitment. This policy development will involve the executive office of the President and all relevant agencies. We will encourage instructive discussions from stakeholders and will expect to hear some new ideas and fresh thinking about how Federal policy can enhance markets for energy efficient technology and make our economy more competitive while reducing our emissions of greenhouse gases.

The essential difference between the Clinton administration and the previous administration on climate change is that we are developing a domestic climate change policy and will use that policy to play a leadership role in promoting an effective global response. Our policy development process will represent a significant departure from that undertaken by the Bush administration when it produced a draft action plan in December.

Let me briefly speak to the problems with that first iteration, particularly through the public comment process.

Although the Bush plan met the letter of the requirement established by the "Prompt Start" Resolution, it was not adequate to the task before us: meeting a national commitment to reduce our emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2000 and continuing our efforts over the long term. We learned from that plan and hope to constructively build upon it.

Here are a few examples. The first draft extensively discussed our national circumstances but didn't set forth how we can best tailor our actions to reduce emissions to take account of those circumstances.

The first draft had a section on emissions inventories, but it didn't set forth clearly and concisely the baseline numbers or provide detailed descriptions of which gases are produced inside which sectors; all critical information for reducing emissions.

Much of this we learned again, Mr. Chairman, from the comment section when the Bush plan was submitted late in 1992. It was out, as you know, for public comment, and much of what we have learned is public comment on that as well as our own analysis of the plan.

The draft was incomplete on the measures that can be taken to mitigate the effects of climate change. It failed to state clearly what projected U.S. emissions levels would be either with or without the actions identified in the draft. The draft addressed emissions by the year 2000 but avoided any mention of trends beyond that date. In fact, there was virtually no discussion of steps that would be critical to develop a longer-term strategy, in particular, to develop low-emitting technologies and to engage the private sector.

And it is our intent to deeply engage in this process of setting up the plan to also deeply engage the private sector and as much of the nongovernmental organization sector as we possibly can.

In more than 40 sets of comments received on the Bush draft plan, one prominent theme was the number of activities underway in the private sector to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For example, in 1992, Pacific Gas and Electric, the Nation's largest utility company, through its own more than 50 conservation programs, was able to prevent the release of 280,000 tons of carbon. But the first draft did not include discussions of programs like PG&E's. Much more like that was being done in the private sector and should be acknowledged and credited.

The country has reached out and taken major steps in the private sector, and we want to incorporate that as thoroughly as we possibly can. If we are going to deal seriously with the threat of global climate change, we must find ways to harness the dynamism and creativity of our private sector and put market forces to work in support of environmental goals. It is the administration's expectation that the new plan will address these critical needs more fully.

Our actions alone, even as large as we are, will not be enough to reverse the overall trend in atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases. So we must establish a partnership with other countries, as suggested in Congressman Roth's opening comments. Sources of emissions are spread globally, and action to reduce emissions anywhere on the planet has global significance.

The United States currently contributes about 20 percent of global net emissions, although our share of the population is about 6 percent. Although our share of global emissions is declining, developing countries represent an increasing share of the total emissions; about 40 percent today and perhaps rising to 60 percent by the year 2030.

To make a significant contribution to protecting the climate, the United States must first demonstrate its own resolve and then leverage our example in encouraging efforts to reduce emissions the world over.

Within the scope of our limited resources, the United States must promote a partnership approach between developed and developing countries. Such an approach must reconcile different but compatible interests in environment and development. That these are compatible is clear. Assistance that we provide to developing countries will meet both of our needs; ours with respect to the strong concern that we have for the preservation of the global environment and creation of domestic jobs and environmental technologies, and theirs both for their own environmental concerns and for the concomitant requirement to continue along the path of environmentally sustainable economic growth.

To begin resolving this issue, industrialized countries will have to take the lead in implementing the Convention's commitments as agreed in the Convention language itself and encourage developing countries to follow.

In my view, such leadership will be linked to the quality of our national response as well as to the extent of financial and technical assistance we and other industrialized nations will provide to the developing world.

We have begun to demonstrate our concern for addressing the longer-term global effort. We are providing $25 million to the U.S. country studies initiative to provide analytical and institutional foundation from which countries may develop appropriate measures and actions to address climate change. Studies enable countries to address vulnerabilities to climate change, measures to limit net greenhouse gas emissions, or both.

It is very clear that these country studies are very important, Mr. Chairman. And we are dedicated to working with other countries to help them identify baselines, identify what they are doing, and overall, with them, given a parallel set of data, to develop a stronger partnership. And we are very encouraged by the response of countries working with us on these country study efforts.

The country studies initiative coordinated through a State Department committee is operated by DOE, EPA, and AID.

Finally, a comment on potential modifications of the Convention and questions about that.

Under the provisions of the Climate Convention, all parties are called upon to formulate and implement programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with developing countries taking the lead. There is a broad agreement about the first step in this effort. Countries are aiming to return their emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2000.

To move forward, I believe that our work under the Convention must focus on even a longer term. Once all countries have ratified the Convention-and the State Department will be beginning a campaign to encourage this-we must evaluate the obstacles to its implementation and work to overcome them.

As I noted earlier, the preponderance of future emissions are most likely to come from the developing countries. We must, therefore, begin now to develop appropriate responses to help those countries reduce their emissions while continuing in the path toward economic prosperity, a response that is sure to involve the development and commercial exchange of new environmentally sound technologies.