Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 7 June 2017
Existing climate efforts expected to keep US goals on track

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER country’s top 10 list of car-
Associated Press bon emitters to sign pledg-
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — es.
The momentum of climate Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie
change efforts and the af- Biskupsi, who joined former
fordability of cleaner fuels New York Mayor Michael
will keep the United States Bloomberg’s “We Are Still
moving toward its goals of In” campaign, along with
cutting emissions despite mayors of Houston, Atlanta
the Trump administration’s and hundreds of other lo-
withdrawal from the Paris cal leaders, cited the eco-
global accord, business nomics for her state: Utah
and government leaders has a $1 billion skiing indus-
in a growing alliance said try threatened by climate
Tuesday. change and marked 65
New York, California and percent growth last year
11 other states represent- alone in solar power, as
ing nearly 40 percent of one of the country’s sunni-
the U.S. economy, mayors est states.
of about 200 cities, and “Utah is warming at twice
leaders of business giants the global average, and
including Amazon, Apple In this Dec. 13, 2016 photo, scientists hold signs during a rally in conjunction with the American our drinking water is at
and Target have signed Geophysical Union’s fall meeting in San Francisco. Vowing to keep the United States on track to risk,” said Biskupsi, saying
meet its emissions-cutting target even without the U.S. government’s support, more than a dozen
pledges to keep reducing governors representing nearly 40 percent of the U.S. economy by Tuesday, June 6, 2017, had she was acting “for the
their fossil-fuel emissions af- pledged themselves to stay in the climate-change fight despite the Trump administration’s with- well-being of the planet
ter President Donald Trump drawal from the Paris climate accords last week. I’m leaving to my sons and
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) your children.”
Undoing most existing
announced he would with- U.S. programs that curb
draw the U.S. from the 2015 car pollution and other
Paris climate accord. climate-changing emis-
“Our coalition wants to let sions would probably take
the world know that ab- years and court battles if
sent leadership from our Trump tries, climate experts
federal government,” the say. A few efforts, such as
country will keep cutting its a reduction on methane
emissions from fossil fuels, emissions introduced by
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown the Obama administration,
told reporters Tuesday. could be overturned more
California, New York, Vir- easily.
ginia, Connecticut, North The momentum of exist-
Carolina, Minnesota, ing climate-change efforts
Rhode Island, Washington and the availability natural
state, Vermont, Massachu- gas, wind and solar power
setts, Delaware, Oregon mean those loyal to the
and Washington, D.C., Paris accord in the U.S. will
have signed pledges. have an easier time, with
The states, most led by emissions expected to fall
Democrats, represent $7 overall for years, said Rob-
trillion of the U.S. gross do- ert Perciasepe with the
mestic product, or 38 per- Center for Climate and En-
cent. ergy Solutions, who worked
Texas, the largest producer with Bloomberg’s group on
of climate-changing car- the climate pledge.
bon dioxide in the U.S. and Some studies suggest the
the biggest state economy United States will cut emis-
after California, is a key sions as much as 19 per-
figure absent from the list. cent by 2025 if it simply
More than two dozen other moves forward as is, he
states, mostly in the coun- said. That’s not far from
try’s middle, already had former President Barack
been fighting stepped-up Obama’s goals for a re-
federal emissions-cutting duction of 25 to 28 percent
programs before Trump’s as part of the Paris accord,
announcement. Perciasepe said.
Top Texas leaders have Since Thursday, commit-
had little public comment ments from cities, universi-
on the withdrawal from the ties and businesses were
global accord, although happening so fast that or-
the state’s attorney gen- ganizers had to set up a
eral praised the move. website where they could
New York and California sign up automatically, Per-
are the only states in the
ciasepe said.q