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President Trump on Monday signed an executive order to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, the pact among almost all nations to fight climate change.<\/p>\n
By withdrawing, the United States will join Iran, Libya and Yemen as the only four countries not party to the agreement, under which nations work together to keep global warming below levels that could lead to to environmental catastrophe.<\/p>\n
The move, one of several energy-related announcements in the hours <\/span>following his inauguration, is yet another about-face in United States participation in global climate negotiations. During his first term Mr. Trump withdrew from the Paris accord, but then President Biden quickly rejoined in 2020 after winning the White House.<\/p>\n Scientists, activists and Democratic officials assailed the move as one that would deepen the climate crisis and backfire on American workers. Coupled with Mr. Trump\u2019s other energy measures on Monday, withdrawal from the pact signals his administration\u2019s determination to double down on fossil-fuel extraction and production, and to move away from clean-energy technologies like electric vehicles and power-generating wind turbines.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cIf they want to be tough on China, don\u2019t punish U.S. automakers and hard-working Americans by handing our clean-car keys to the Chinese,\u201d said Gina McCarthy, former White House climate adviser and former head of the Environmental Protection Administration. \u201cThe United States must continue to show leadership on the international stage if we want to have any say in how trillions of dollars in financial investments, policies and decisions are made.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n On Monday Mr. Trump also signed a letter to the United Nations, which administers the pact, notifying the world body of the withdrawal. The withdrawal will become official one year after the submission of the letter. <\/p>\n U.S. efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions were already stalling in 2024, and Mr. Trump\u2019s entry into office makes it increasingly unlikely the United States will live up to its ambitious pledges to cut them even further. Emissions dropped just a fraction last year, 0.2 percent, compared with the year earlier, according to estimates<\/a> published this month by the Rhodium Group, a research firm.<\/p>\n Despite continued rapid growth in solar and wind power that was spurred by the previous administration\u2019s signature climate legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act, emissions levels stayed relatively flat last year because demand for electricity surged nationwide, which led to a spike in the amount of natural gas burned by power plants.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The fact that emissions didn\u2019t decline much means the United States is even further off-track from hitting Mr. Biden\u2019s goal, announced last month under the auspices of the Paris Agreement, of slashing greenhouse gases 61 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. Scientists say all major economies would have to cut their emissions deeply this decade to keep global warming at relatively low levels.<\/p>\n In a scenario where Mr. Trump rolled back most of Mr. Biden\u2019s climate policies, U.S. emissions might fall only 24 to 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, the Rhodium Group found.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cPresident Trump is choosing to begin his term pandering to the fossil fuel industry and its allies,\u201d the Union of Concerned Scientists said in a statement. \u201cHis disgraceful and destructive decision is an ominous harbinger of what people in the United States should expect from him and his anti-science cabinet.\u201d<\/p>\n Since 2005, United States emissions have fallen roughly 20 percent, a significant drop at a time when the economy has also expanded. But to meet its climate goals, U.S. emissions would need to decline nearly 10 times as fast each year as they\u2019ve fallen over the past decade.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The United States is also a major exporter of emissions. Because of policies promoted by both Republicans and Democrats, the United States is now producing more crude oil and natural gas than any nation in history. Mr. Trump has vowed to further ramp up production and exports.<\/p>\n While the United States may not be party to the Paris Agreement, it will still be part of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, which hosts annual climate negotiations known as COPs. This year\u2019s COP will be held in Brazil in November and nations will be announcing new pledges for emissions reductions.<\/p>\n