I’m pleased that the pope stressed the need to take serious action on climate change. Though President Obama has made significant efforts to address climate change, such as implementing the Clean Power Plan, there is still more work to be done.

Fourteen of the last 15 years have been the hottest on record and during that time, we’ve experienced more intense droughts, wildfires and extreme weather events. Despite these obvious problems, a House sub-committee recently voted to lift the decades’ old ban on crude oil exports. Driven by the oil industry (that has made lifting the ban a top priority), the full house is scheduled to vote on this issue soon and a Senate subcommittee will take up the issues in the coming weeks as well. Lifting the ban would result in more drilling and an increase in global warming emissions, with estimates of at least 22 million metric tons per year.

For the sake of our planet and future generations, I hope the U.S. Congress was listening to the pope’s message about climate change and votes to keep the ban on crude oil exports.

Patrick Higgins

Durango