US returns to Paris climate club

(Patria) - The United States rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement on Friday, strengthening the global fight against climate change as the Joe Biden administration plans drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions over the next three decades.

Scientists and foreign diplomats have welcomed the US return to the agreement, which became official 30 days after President Biden ordered the move on his first day in office.

Almost 200 countries signed the 2015 agreement to prevent catastrophic climate change, and the United States was the only country to withdraw from it. That step was taken by former President Donald Trump, who claimed that climate action would be too expensive.

US Climate Envoy John Kerry will participate in virtual events on Friday to mark the US return to the agreement, including appearances with the ambassadors to Britain and Italy, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and UN Special Envoy for Climate Change Michael Bloomberg.

Biden has pledged to chart a path to net-zero US emissions by 2050. Scientists believe this goal is in line with what is needed and emphasize that global emissions must fall by half by 2030 to prevent the most devastating effects of global warming.

Kerry, along with Biden's climate advisor Gina McCarthy, is working on new regulations and incentives to accelerate the adoption of clean energy and the transition away from fossil fuels.

These measures will form the basis for Washington's next emissions reduction target, the Nationally Determined Contribution, which will be announced before the global climate summit hosted by Biden on April 22. The next UN climate conference will be held in November in Glasgow.

Biden has also signed more than a dozen executive orders related to climate change.

Despite the excitement over the US return to global negotiations, climate negotiators say the path will not be easy. Biden's climate goals face political challenges in the US, opposition from fossil fuel companies, and some concern from foreign leaders about the abrupt changes in US climate policy.

"There is a lot to make up for, but hope for the Paris Agreement is alive and strong," said Rachel Cleetus of the Union of Concerned Scientists, Hina reports.