US to withdraw from Paris climate accord (ABC News)
The Trump administration has officially told the United Nations the US intends to pull out of the Paris climate change agreement.
President Donald Trump announced in June the US would
leave the pact, and now Washington has formally communicated this to the
UN. The Trump administration has officially told the United Nations the US intends to pull out of the Paris climate change agreement.
The US State Department described its communication with the UN as a "strong message" to the world, but the move was largely symbolic.
Mr Trump was still "open to re-engaging in the Paris agreement if the United States can identify terms that are more favourable to it, its business, its workers, its people and its taxpayers", the State Department said.
"The State Department is telling the UN what the President already told the world on June 1 and it has no legal effect," said Nigel Purvis, a US climate diplomat.
The Paris climate deal explained (ABC News)
The earliest date the United States can completely withdraw from the agreement is November, 2020, the time of the next US presidential election.
The State Department said the US would continue to participate in international meetings and negotiations on current and future climate change deals.
The Paris agreement came into effect in November 2016 and aims to prevent the Earth from heating up by 2 degrees Celsius since the start of the industrial age.
Under the agreement, countries set their own national plans for cutting climate emissions.
That means Mr Trump can come up with different targets for the United States than those set by former president Barack Obama.
Under Mr Obama, the US agreed to reduce polluting emissions more than a quarter from 2005 levels by the year 2025. There is no climate court. All that is required in the agreement is a plan and reporting on progress toward reaching self-set goals.
The world has already warmed about 1.1 degrees Celsius since the Industrial Revolution. The overwhelming majority of scientists say the burning of coal, oil and gas is causing the Earth's climate to change because of heat-trapping gases.
Links
- Au revoir, Paris: Trump's climate deal exit and covfefe
- Trump pulls out of Paris climate deal to 'save US jobs'
- U.S. submits formal notice of withdrawal from Paris climate pact
- Donald Trump Notifies UN of U.S. Paris Agreement Exit | Time.com
- US says it will join UN climate talks despite exit from Paris agreement
No comments :
Post a Comment