16 Senators Unveil Broad Plan to Combat ‘Greenhouse Effect’

Sixteen senators unveiled a comprehensive plan Thursday to combat the global warming that scientists say threatens the planet in the 21st Century.

Their legislation, with proposals ranging from developing safer nuclear power to minimizing destruction of Third World forests, represents the broadest Capitol Hill response yet to warnings from scientists about the so-called greenhouse effect.

“The greenhouse effect is the most significant economic, political, environmental and human problem facing the 21st Century,” said Sen. Timothy E. Wirth (D-Colo.), the principal author of the package.

The bills trample on so many special interests that neither of the chief sponsors--Wirth and Sen. Robert T. Stafford (R-Vt.)--expect to achieve anything more than committee hearings in the remaining months of the current Congress.

Forces Cut in Emissions

The legislation would force reductions in carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by the year 2000. Scientists estimate that carbon dioxide, coming mostly from fossil fuel combustion, produces about half the greenhouse effect. The United States is said to be responsible for 20% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions.

The proposal would require Administration officials to draft a national energy plan emphasizing ways of reducing fossil fuel use and increasing use of renewables such as solar energy.

Predict Temperature Rise

According to scientists, the greenhouse effect will trap so much heat by the middle of the next century that world temperatures will rise up to eight degrees. Some areas will be hit by drought. In addition, oceans will expand, leading to flooding and beach erosion.

The package would authorize about $1 billion through 1992 for research and development of non-fossil energy sources and a new generation of safer and cheaper nuclear reactors. It also calls for greater reliance on cleaner-burning natural gas for heating and transportation.

On the international front, the legislation would authorize spending more than $1.5 billion in the early 1990s to provide birth control information in an effort to slow the demand for fossil fuels in burgeoning nations.