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| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION |
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| INTRODUCED BY DONATUCCI, BRADFORD, BRENNAN, BRIGGS, CALTAGIRONE, DiGIROLAMO, FABRIZIO, GEIST, GOODMAN, HARHAI, HENNESSEY, HESS, JOSEPHS, KORTZ, KULA, MAHONEY, MANN, McGEEHAN, MILLARD, MIRABITO, M. O'BRIEN, PAYTON, READSHAW, ROEBUCK, SANTONI, SCAVELLO, STABACK, THOMAS, VEREB, VULAKOVICH, WATERS, WATSON AND YOUNGBLOOD, JUNE 6, 2011 |
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| INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, JUNE 6, 2011 |
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| A RESOLUTION |
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1 | Recognizing the month of May 2011 as "Rain Forest Awareness |
2 | Month" in Pennsylvania and urging Commonwealth residents to |
3 | become aware of the disappearing rain forests worldwide and |
4 | to make choices that can lead to protection of those |
5 | remaining areas. |
6 | WHEREAS, Rain forests originally covered 12% of the earth's |
7 | surface, and now cover just 6%, and yet are home to more than |
8 | one half of the planet's species, including ours; and |
9 | WHEREAS, Fifty million indigenous peoples call the rain |
10 | forests home and have lived there sustainably for millennia; and |
11 | WHEREAS, More than 25% of the medicines in general use today |
12 | had their origins in the rain forest, while rain forests offer a |
13 | bounty of diverse foods including fruits, vegetables, spices and |
14 | proteins which could prove essential to meeting the planet's |
15 | growing demand for food and nutrition; and |
16 | WHEREAS, Although they cover only a small portion of the |
17 | planet's surface, rain forests affect climate and weather the |
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1 | world over; and |
2 | WHEREAS, Tropical rain forests replenish 20% of the oxygen in |
3 | the atmosphere through photosynthesis but more importantly, |
4 | perhaps, they sequester, or store, vast amounts of carbon in |
5 | their biomass which is, in large part, the carbon released by |
6 | the burning of fossil fuels for cars, electricity and industry; |
7 | and |
8 | WHEREAS, When forests are destroyed, often by burning, huge |
9 | amounts of CO2 are released, exacerbating the greenhouse effect |
10 | and global warming; and |
11 | WHEREAS, Rain forests play a key role in controlling |
12 | flooding, erosion and siltation in many parts of the world, as |
13 | they absorb huge amounts of rainfall and then slowly release it |
14 | as a constant supply of clean H2O; and |
15 | WHEREAS, Global weather patterns are impacted by the dark, |
16 | warm and humid rain forests due to the slowly released water |
17 | vapor that rises to the atmosphere and forms clouds, which |
18 | travel great distances and bring essential rain all over the |
19 | globe; and |
20 | WHEREAS, Rain forests are also responsible for maintaining |
21 | the hydrological cycle and rain fall patterns, and one tree can |
22 | evaporate as much as 75 gallons of water per day; and |
23 | WHEREAS, According to the Rainforest Foundation US, |
24 | www.rainforestfoundation.org, between the years 2000 and 2008, |
25 | more than 10.4 million hectares, an area 2.5 times the size of |
26 | Switzerland, of rain forest were destroyed by logging and to |
27 | make way for ranching and nonsustainable agriculture, and the |
28 | rate of destruction increased dramatically to one acre per |
29 | second; therefore be it |
30 | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives join with the |
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1 | Rainforest Foundation US in designating May 2011 as "Rain Forest |
2 | Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania and urge all Commonwealth |
3 | residents to make small, everyday choices which can have far- |
4 | reaching repercussions to protect rain forests by choosing |
5 | products that include sustainably harvested rain forest |
6 | resources that don't compromise the well-being of rain forest |
7 | communities and species; and be it further |
8 | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives urge all |
9 | Commonwealth residents to become more conscious of the benefits |
10 | of the world's rain forests, for schools to hold discussions |
11 | about the effects that the disappearance of rain forests may |
12 | have on the world and that all residents speak out to the |
13 | President and Congress of the United States, corporate officials |
14 | and others about any concerns they may have about the need to |
15 | protect the world's rain forests; and be it further |
16 | RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to |
17 | the Rainforest Foundation US and to the presiding officers of |
18 | each house of Congress and to each member of Congress from |
19 | Pennsylvania. |
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