House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

House of Representatives
Session of 2017 - 2018 Regular Session

Posted:	April 3, 2018 11:01 AM
From:	Representative Maria P. Donatucci
To:	All House members
Subject:	Designating May 2018 as Rainforest Awareness Month in Pennsylvania

In the near future, I plan to introduce a resolution designating May 2018 as “Rainforest Awareness Month” in Pennsylvania. Rainforest Foundation US (RFUS) annually recognizes May as “Rainforest Awareness Month” as part of its ongoing effort to publicize the critical role this ecosystem plays in the vitality of our planet. According to RFUS, more than 25% of the medicines in general use today had their origins in a rainforest. Rainforests are also home to nearly half of the world’s species. In addition, rainforests are critical to the earth’s future since they play a significant role in the world-wide hydrological cycle and contribute greatly to the absorption of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Vast expanses of rainforests are disappearing. While rainforests once covered 12% of the earth’s surface, they now represent only 6% of this land area. RFUS estimates that rainforest land equal to the size of one football field is destroyed every second, which equates to a loss of approximately 32 million acres of rainforests annually. I hope you will join me in supporting this resolution.
View Attachment

Introduced as HR895