We're back in the Paris Climate Agreement

[SaysWho?]

U.S. rejoins Paris climate agreement. Now comes the daunting part.

WWW.NBCNEWS.COM

---

The Biden administration seeks to show seriousness of purpose to meet its emissions-cutting commitments and restore the U.S.'s diminished standing on the world stage.

 

Quote

U.S. emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases plunged last year, but that was an anomaly owing to the coronavirus pandemic, which put the brakes on large segments of the economy. As the country rebounds, emissions are expected to rise once again, and President Joe Biden's administration is racing to find ways to put the U.S. on track to meet even more ambitious targets that scientists say are needed to avert the worst effects of global warming.

 

That's especially true when it comes to building back U.S. credibility to persuade China, by far the world's largest emitter, to move faster.

 

"We have to show we are not just talking the talk but walking the walk," said Todd Stern, the lead U.S. negotiator for the Obama administration on the 2015 climate agreement. "Our capacity to be impactful will start at home. Everybody understands the United States has got to get a really revved-up effort."

 

Quote

In the coming months, the Biden administration must also develop a new emissions-cutting target, known as a Nationally Determined Contribution, which will determine the scope of the country's ambitious goals over the next decade. Under the Paris Agreement, the commitments, which are revisited every five years, aren't binding, although other parts of the deal are.

 

The previous target, set by President Barack Obama, committed the U.S. to cut emissions by at least 26 percent by 2025 compared to 2005. In the years since, U.S. emissions have, indeed, declined, spurred in part by steps undertaken during the Obama administration to curtail emissions from power plants, vehicles and other sources — but not enough.

 

[Brian]

For 4 years until the next Republican president pulls us out 

[mclumber1]

Now watch as our carbon output goes up, instead of down like it has for the last few years.

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Just now, mclumber1 said:

Now watch as our carbon output goes up, instead of down like it has for the last few years.

Big "I go to church so I can be an asshole to everyone I meet" vibes 

[SaysWho?]

7 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

Now watch as our carbon output goes up, instead of down like it has for the last few years.

 

I mean, it's going to this year simply because travel will go up as more people worldwide are vaccinated. However, considering this started with Obama and not Trump, I wouldn't expect for us to reverse the trend that started in 09.

 

 

 

 

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Unless we actively reverse natural gas use emissions will keep going on. And that's just in the energy production sector!

[SaysWho?]

5 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Unless we actively reverse natural gas use emissions will keep going on. And that's just in the energy production sector!

They’re going to continue unless it’s stopped. Until then, we’ve seen a substantial drop since two decades ago, and it’s been a combination of government and changes in consumption.

[PaladinSolo]

9 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Unless we actively reverse natural gas use emissions will keep going on. And that's just in the energy production sector!

We're probably at or close to peak natural gas usage, renewables make up a majority of new energy projects, estimates actually have natural gas use dropping in the near future.  Overall the energy production sector has been in decline on green house gas emissions, transportation is where we need to do the most work as it surpassed energy production a few years ago.

[CitizenVectron]

18 minutes ago, PaladinSolo said:

We're probably at or close to peak natural gas usage, renewables make up a majority of new energy projects, estimates actually have natural gas use dropping in the near future.  Overall the energy production sector has been in decline on green house gas emissions, transportation is where we need to do the most work as it surpassed energy production a few years ago.

 

And even more important is just industrial production. As seen when COVID-19 hit, decreases in CO2 from transportation dropped, but didn't make much of a dent in actual emissions. Manufacturing/industrial use is really the bulk of what needs to be addressed.