Oil company leaders at ExxonMobil, BP America, Chevron and Shell testified on climate change in front of the House Oversight and Reform Committee Thursday. Their testimony, shown in the video above, was in response to allegations the oil industry concealed evidence about the dangers of climate change.
Thursday’s hearing came after months of public efforts by Democrats to obtain documents and other information on the industry’s role in stopping climate action over multiple decades. Democrats say the fossil fuel industry has had scientific evidence about the dangers of climate change since at least 1977, yet spread disinformation regarding the harm the industry’s products cause.
“For far too long, Big Oil has escaped accountability for its central role in bringing our planet to the brink of a climate catastrophe,” committee chairwoman Carolyn Maloney said Thursday. “That ends today. Big Oil has known the truth about climate change for decades.”
Oil company leaders denied those allegations at the hearing.
“ExxonMobil has been engaged in policy discussions related to the energy environment for years,” ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods said. “We’ve been vocal and transparent in our support for governments to implement policies that are cost effective and achieve the greatest emission reductions at the lowest overall cost to society.”
“At Chevron, we’ve been very clear about where we stand. We accept the scientific consensus. Climate change is real and the use of fossil fuels contributes to it,” Chevron CEO Michael Wirth added. “While our views on climate change have developed over time, any suggestion that Chevron is engaged in an effort to spread disinformation and mislead the public on these complex issues is simply wrong.”
While the oil company leaders agreed with Maloney on the existence and threat posed by climate change, they refused her request to pledge that their companies would not spend money to oppose efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. BP America CEO David Lawler did say “we’re pledging to advocate for low-carbon policies that do in fact take the company and the world to net-zero” carbon emissions.
