by Tsvetana Paraskova
As part of the new U.S. Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the Paris Agreement, which President Biden re-joined on his first day in office, the U.S. will now target to achieve a 50-52 percent reduction from 2005 levels in economy-wide net greenhouse gas pollution in 2030.
The Administration says that the new aggressive emission-reduction goal positions American workers and industry to tackle the climate crisis.
The United States needs to reduce its emissions by at least 57 percent by 2030 below 2005 levels to fulfill its share of the cuts consistent with the Paris Agreement, Climate Action Tracker (CAT) said in a report last month.
The target announced today “is part of the President’s focus on building back better in a way that will create millions of good-paying, union jobs, ensure economic competitiveness, advance environmental justice, and improve the health and security of communities across America,” the White House said.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) commented on the announcement, with API President and CEO Mike Sommers saying:
“The new U.S. nationally determined contribution addresses only half of the dual challenge of reducing the risks of climate change while ensuring affordable, reliable energy for all Americans. With a transparent price on carbon and innovation, we can make measurable climate progress within this decade without hurting America’s middle class, jeopardizing U.S. national security, and undermining economic recovery.”
Regarding an anticipated executive order to address climate-related financial risk, API Vice President of Corporate Policy Stephen Comstock said:
“As the administration reviews the impacts of climate change on the financial sector, any future regulatory actions must be workable for all industries, support access to capital for all sectors, and avoid a one-size-fits-all, prescriptive approach that would only stifle the innovative work underway in the private sector to manage climate-related risks and opportunities.”
*Tsvetana is a writer for Oilprice.com with over a decade of experience writing for news outlets such as iNVEZZ and SeeNews.
(Oilprice.com, April 22, 2021)
