15 U.S.C. § 2951 — Findings and purposes

Page 1968 TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE § 2951 considered in developing national global change research efforts. (b) Availability of research findings The President, the Chairman of the Council, and the heads of the agencies and departments represented on the Committee, shall ensure that the research findings of the Committee, and of Federal agencies and departments, are available to— (1) the Environmental Protection Agency for use in the formulation of a coordinated na- tional policy on global climate change pursu- ant to section 1103 of the Global Climate Pro- tection Act of 1987 (15 U.S.C. 2901 note); and (2) all Federal agencies and departments for use in the formulation of coordinated national policies for responding to human-induced and natural processes of global change pursuant to other statutory responsibilities and obliga- tions. (c) Effect on Federal response actions Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed, interpreted, or applied to preclude or delay the planning or implementation of any Federal ac- tion designed, in whole or in part, to address the threats of stratospheric ozone depletion or glob- al climate change. (Pub. L. 101–606, title I, § 108, Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3101.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The National Climate Program Act, referred to in subsec. (a), is Pub. L. 95–367, Sept. 17, 1978, 92 Stat. 601, which is classified principally to chapter 56 (§ 2901 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under sec- tion 2901 of this title and Tables. SUBCHAPTER II—INTERNATIONAL CO- OPERATION IN GLOBAL CHANGE RE- SEARCH § 2951. Findings and purposes (a) Findings The Congress makes the following findings: (1) Pooling of international resources and scientific capabilities will be essential to a successful international global change pro- gram. (2) While international scientific planning is already underway, there is currently no com- prehensive intergovernmental mechanism for planning, coordinating, or implementing re- search to understand global change and to mitigate possible adverse effects. (3) An international global change research program will be important in building future consensus on methods for reducing global en- vironmental degradation. (4) The United States, as a world leader in environmental and Earth sciences, should help provide leadership in developing and imple- menting an international global change re- search program. (b) Purposes The purposes of this subchapter are to— (1) promote international, intergovern- mental cooperation on global change research; (2) involve scientists and policymakers from developing nations in such cooperative global change research programs; and (3) promote international efforts to provide technical and other assistance to developing nations which will facilitate improvements in their domestic standard of living while mini- mizing damage to the global or regional envi- ronment. (Pub. L. 101–606, title II, § 202, Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3102.) § 2952. International discussions (a) Global change research The President should direct the Secretary of State, in cooperation with the Committee, to initiate discussions with other nations leading toward international protocols and other agree- ments to coordinate global change research ac- tivities. Such discussions should include the fol- lowing issues: (1) Allocation of costs in global change re- search programs, especially with respect to major capital projects. (2) Coordination of global change research plans with those developed by international organizations such as the International Coun- cil on Scientific Unions, the World Meteoro- logical Organization, and the United Nations Environment Program. (3) Establishment of global change research centers and training programs for scientists, especially those from developing nations. (4) Development of innovative methods for management of international global change research, including— (A) use of new or existing intergovern- mental organizations for the coordination or funding of global change research; and (B) creation of a limited foundation for global change research. (5) The prompt establishment of inter- national projects to— (A) create globally accessible formats for data collected by various international sources; and (B) combine and interpret data from var- ious sources to produce information readily usable by policymakers attempting to for- mulate effective strategies for preventing, mitigating, and adapting to possible adverse effects of global change. (6) Establishment of international offices to disseminate information useful in identifying, preventing, mitigating, or adapting to the pos- sible effects of global change. (b) Energy research The President should direct the Secretary of State (in cooperation with the Secretary of En- ergy, the Secretary of Commerce, the United States Trade Representative, and other appro- priate members of the Committee) to initiate discussions with other nations leading toward an international research protocol for coopera- tion on the development of energy technologies which have minimally adverse effects on the en- vironment. Such discussions should include, but not be limited to, the following issues: