President Donald Trump will withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, according to an executive order he signed Monday as one of his first acts after taking office.
Under the Paris Agreement, signed in 2016, participating nations pledged to work together to prevent global temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels through annual commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In recent years, participating nations, including the United States, have also pledged billions of dollars for funds that help developing nations with climate adaptation and mitigation.
“In recent years, the United States has sought to join international agreements and initiatives that do not reflect our country’s values or our contributions to achieving economic and environmental goals,” the White House stated in the order. “Furthermore, these agreements direct American taxpayer dollars to countries that do not require, nor deserve, financial assistance in the interest of the American people.”
The order said the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations will submit written notification of the withdrawal.
“The United States will consider its withdrawal from the Agreement and any consequent obligations to take effect immediately following this notification provision,” he added.
The United States will join Libya, Yemen and Iran as nations that are not part of the Paris Agreement. As the United States exits the global stage of climate action, some experts worry that other nations may follow suit and that the United States may be giving up important input on international climate policy.
Climate groups immediately condemned the move.
“Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement is a travesty,” Rachel Cleetus, policy director for the Union of Concerned Scientists’ climate and energy program, said in an email statement. “It is yet another example of President Trump’s anti-science, fossil fuel-based agenda, which aims to increase the profits of polluting companies at the expense of the health and well-being of people across the country.”
The world continues to release unprecedented amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, raising global temperatures, which in turn has worsened extreme weather in the United States and around the world. Destructive and deadly floods, hurricanes and wildfires have been repeatedly linked to climate change as rising temperatures alter precipitation patterns and storm dynamics.
The United States is responsible for 20% of all cumulative greenhouse gas emissions, the largest share of human emissions since the industrial revolution ended in 1850, according to an analysis of historical data by the Washington-based climate publication Carbon Brief. the United Kingdom. Since 2005, China has ranked as the largest emitter, followed by the United States and then India, according to data from environmental data platform Climate Watch.
“As the world’s most powerful nation and its largest historical emitter, we have a duty to lead the world by example in reducing emissions,” Ben Jealous, executive director of the Sierra Club, said in a statement. “As a country and people committed to protecting this and all future generations, we also have a deep moral obligation to act as bravely as possible to do everything we can to avoid the worst of the climate crisis.”
Last year was the warmest on record and the first to exceed the Paris target of 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, although experts warned that one or more individual years exceeding 1.5C does not mean it is already it is not possible to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement. possible.
Trump is expected to roll back a variety of climate efforts implemented by the Biden administration, such as stricter emissions limits for power plants, cuts to tailpipe emissions from new vehicles designed to help the transition to electricity and a ban on offshore drilling in 625 million acres of ocean waters. In another sweeping statement on Monday, Trump vowed to “unlock American energy” and end Biden’s “climate extremism” policies.
For the first time, Trump vowed to declare a “national energy emergency” and in a separate executive order directed the heads of executive offices and federal agencies to “eliminate coercive and harmful ‘climate’ policies that drive up food and fuel costs.” . “
