US President Donald Trump will once again withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, the White House said on Monday, removing the world’s largest historical emitter from global efforts to combat climate change. for the second time in a decade.
The decision puts the United States alongside Iran, Libya and Yemen as the only countries in the world outside the 2015 pact, in which governments agreed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels to prevent the worst impacts of climate change.
The announcement, in a White House document, reflects Trump’s skepticism about global warming, which he has called a hoax, and fits into his broader agenda to free U.S. oil and gas drillers from regulation so they can maximize the production.
The United States is already the world’s biggest producer of oil and natural gas thanks to a years-long drilling boom in Texas, New Mexico and elsewhere fueled by fracking technology and strong global prices since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Trump also withdrew the US from the Paris agreement during his first term, although the process took years and was immediately reversed by Biden’s presidency in 2021. Withdrawal this time will likely take less time — just a year — because Trump will not be bound to the initial three-year commitment of the agreement.
This time could also be more damaging to global climate efforts, said Paul Watkinson, a former climate negotiator and senior policy adviser for France.
The US is currently the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, behind China, and its departure undermines the global ambition to reduce these emissions. “It will be more difficult this time because we are in the middle of implementation, up against real choices,” Watkinson said.
The world is now on track for global warming of more than 3C by the end of the century, according to a recent United Nations report, a level that scientists warn would trigger cascading impacts such as rising sea levels, waves of heat and devastating storms.
Nations are already scrambling to make drastic emissions cuts needed to reduce projected temperature rises, as wars, political tensions and tight government budgets push climate change down the priority list.
Trump’s approach contrasts sharply with that of former President Joe Biden, who wanted the United States to lead global climate efforts and sought to encourage a transition away from oil and gas using a combination of subsidies and regulations.
Trump has said he intends to undo these subsidies and regulations to shore up the nation’s budget and grow the economy, but insisted he can do so while ensuring clean air and water in the United States.
Li Shuo, a climate diplomacy expert at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said the U.S. withdrawal risks undermining the United States’ ability to compete with China in key clean energy markets such as solar power and electric vehicles.
“China has everything it needs to win, and the US runs the risk of falling further behind,” he said.
This content was originally published in Trump will withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, says White House document on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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