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S 9060 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD - SENATE July 7, 1988
"(b) The Council shall -
"(1) serve as lead entity reponsible for oversight of the implementation of the Plan;
"(2) coordinate the global change research activities of Federal agencies and departments and report at least annually to the President, through the Chairman of the Council, on any recommended changes in agency or departmental roles that are needed to better implement the Plan;
"(3) following the President's submission to Congress of the annual budget estimate, review each agency budget estimate in the context of the Plan and make the results of that review available to each agency and to the appropriate elements of the Executive Office of the President, particularly the Office of Management and Budget;
[[ asterisk]]"(4) work with the National Research Council and with academic, State, and other groups conducting research and assessments of global changes and their effects;
"(5) coordinate Federal interagency participation in international activities related to global change research and assessment; and
"(6) consult with actual and potential users of such research and assessments.
"(c) The Plan shall provide for, but not be limited to, the following research elements:
"(1) Global measurements, establishing worldwide observations necessary to understand the physical, chemical, and biological processes responsible for changes in the earth system on all timescales.
"(2) Documentation of global change, including the development of mechanisms for recording changes that will actually occur in the earth system over the coming decades.
"(3) Studies of earlier changes in the earth system, using evidence from the geological and fossil record.
"(4) Predictions, using quantitative models of the earth system to identify and stimulate global trends.
"(5) Development of an information base, the assembly of the information essential for effective decisionmaking to respond to the consequences of global change.
"(d)(1) The Plan shall take into consideration, but not be limited to, the following existing agency missions and responsibilities:
[[asterisk left margin]]"(A) The National Science Foundation shall continue to be responsible for basic research in all areas of earth, atmospheric and ocean science, including the relevant biological sciences. Such basic research may include ground-based measurements for regional and global studies; polar studies; large-scale field programs; interpretation and use of space-based data; theoretical and laboratory studies; research facilities support; and development of numerical models, information and communication systems, and data bases.
"(B) The National Aeronautics and Space Administration shall have primary responsibility [[asterisk left margin]] for earth science research missions from space, including those of broad scientific scope, to study the earth as an integrated whole. Associated efforts may include related ground studies; remote-sensing and advanced instrument development; and improvement of techniques for the transmission, processing, archiving, retrieval, and use of data and related models; and other research activities.
"(C) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall continue to be responsible [[asterisk left margin]] for operational environmental satellite programs and research programs on ocean and atmospheric processes. Additional responsibilities shall include climate diagnostics and prediction; development of predictive models and techniques for detecting natural and human-made changes; acquisition, maintenance, and distribution of long-term data bases; calibration and validation of environmental observations; processing and archiving of space-based data and development and support of ground-based oceanic and atmospheric monitoring systems.
"(D) The United States Geological Survey shall have primary responsibilities for geological studies and mapping. Additional areas of responsibility shall include paleoclimate, hydrologic cycles, geographical information systems, and management of land remote- sensing data, including acquisition, maintenance, and distribution of long-term data bases for these areas.
"(2) The Plan shall reflect the need for collaboration among agencies with respect to--
"(A) the establishment and development of an information system for earth system science; and
"(B) basic research into the development of new conceptual and numerical models of the earth system.
"(e) The Chairman of the Council and the Secretary of State shall cooperate in--
"(1) providing representation at international governmental meetings and conferences in global change in which the United States participates; and
"(2) coordinating the Federal activities of the United States with the global change research and assessment programs of other nations and international agencies and organizations, including the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environmental Program.
"(f) Each Federal agency and department involved in global change research shall, as part of its annual request for appropriations to the Office of Management and Budget, submit a report identifying each element of its proposed global change activities, which--
[[asterisk left margin]] "(1) specifies whether each such element (A) contributes primarily to the implementation of the Plan or (B) contributes primarily to the achievement of other objectives but aids Plan implementation in important ways; and
[[asterisk left margin]] "(2) states the portion of its request for appropriations that is allocated to each such element.
The Office of Management and Budget shall review each such report in light of the goals, priorities, and agency responsibilities set forth in the Plan, and shall include, in the President's annual budget estimate, a statement of the portion of each agency or department's annual budget estimate that is allocated to each element of such agency or department's global change activities. The Office of Management and Budget shall ensure that a copy of the President's annual budget estimate is transmitted to the Chairman of the Council at the same time as such budget estimate is submitted to Congress.
"Relation to Other Laws
"Sec. 605. (a) The President, the Chairman of the Council, and the Secretary of Commerce shall ensure that the research elements of the National Climate Program, established by the National Climate Program Act (15 U.S.C 2901 et seq.), are made an integral component of national global change research efforts.
"(b) The President, the Chairman of the Council, and the heads of the agencies represented on the Council shall ensure that the research findings of the Council and of Federal agencies and departments are available to the Environmental Protection Agency for use in the formulation of a coordinated national policy on global climate change pursuant to section 1103 of the Global Climate Protection Act of 1987 (15 U.S.C. 2901, note).
"Annual Report
"Sec 606. (a) The Chairman of the Council shall prepare and submit to the President and Congress, not later than January 31 of each year, an annual report on the activities conducted pursuant to this title during the preceding fiscal year, including--
"(1) a summary of the achievements of Federal global change research efforts during that preceding fiscal year;
"(2) an analysis of the progress made toward achieving the goals and objectives of the Plan;
"(3) a copy or summary of the Plan and any changes made in such Plan;
"(4) a summary of agency budgets for global change activities for that preceding fiscal year; and
"(5) any recommendations regarding additional action or legislation which may be required to assist in achieving the purposes of this title.
"(b) The annual report required under section 7 of the National Climate Program Act (15 U.S.C. 2906) may be incorporated into the annual report required under sub-section (a) of this section.".
Mr. PRESSLER. I am pleased to join Senator HOLLINGS as a sponsor of the National Science and Technology Policy Amendments of 1988. He has eloquently and correctly stated the immediate need for an understanding of the global changes which are now occurring and which are predicted to accelerate in the future unless we do something now.
Crops are dying in a drought which is truly nationwide. The global mean temperature, if it continues at the present rate, will be higher this year than at any time since recordkeeping began. The ozone depletion in the atmosphere continues at an alarming rate. These and other significant changes in the Earth's environment require a national and international commitment to research and damage control.
As a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, I understand the danger we face if we do not comprehend the effects of our actions upon the global environment. As a South Dakotan, I have seen firsthand the devastation caused by the current drought. I only hope that 10 or 15 years from now, we don't look back on 1988 as the first in a series of perennial drought years. The global climate is changing for the worse. It is incumbent upon us to find out as soon as possible what we can do to slow down or stop this potentially disastrous course.
I strongly support current and planned efforts through NASA, NOAA, and other agencies to research the effects of global change. This legislation, I believe, will assist, coordinate, and promote these actions. The bill's language stresses the importance of long-term data bases. In fact, the most essential element of global change research is the acquisition, maintenance, processing, archiving and retrieval of data.
The Earth Resources Observation System [EROS] Data Center, a facility devoted to remote-sensing data ar-
