Paris climate accord creates turbulence for Obama

2016-04-22

Paris climate accord creates turbulence for Obama

About 160 countries are expected to sign the Paris Agreement on climate change on Friday in a symbolic triumph for a landmark deal that once seemed unlikely but now appears on track to enter into force years ahead of schedule. (Associated Press)

The political forecast for Friday’s signing of the historic Paris Agreement on climate change calls for sunshine at the White House, with lukewarm temperatures on the left and thunderstorms on the right.The nonbinding agreement, scheduled to be signed on Earth Day by Secretary of State John F. Kerry and about 165 other world leaders at the United Nations, sets a long-term goal of keeping the increase of global average temperatures at less than 2 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels.

President Obama followed up in March by pledging to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025.

Forged in December in a suburb of Paris, the agreement is seen as a cornerstone of Mr. Obama’s environmental legacy even though free market and climate change advocates have expressed serious concerns about its necessity and viability.
While crediting the president for leading on the climate issue, environmentalists have been less than effusive in their praise for the accord, framing the deal as more of a good start than a game-changer in reducing carbon dioxide emissions and staving off what they see as a looming global disaster.
“Paris isn’t the end of the story, but a conclusion of a particular chapter,” the climate change group 350.org said in a statement. “Now, it’s up to us to strengthen these promises, make sure they are kept, and then accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels and toward 100% renewable energy.”
The National Resources Defense Council issued a petition Thursday calling on the “Big Five” world powers — the United States, China, India, the European Union and Brazil — to “keep your climate promise.”
Meanwhile, opponents warn that the Paris Agreement’s goals, if met, will result in widespread “energy poverty” with no appreciable impact on temperatures.
“The Paris climate agreement is a bad deal for America. The president’s promise is an unworkable political gesture,” said a statement by Rep. Lamar Smith, Texas Republican and chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee.
“This administration has put ideology ahead of what’s best for hardworking American families.”
The agreement, and Mr. Obama’s promises in implementing it, “will raise electric bills, ration energy and slow economic growth,” Mr. Smith said.
In a video released this week, the Energy & Environmental Legal Institute pointed to aggressive greenhouse gas reductions in Europe that have led to spiking energy bills, forcing low-income residents to choose between “heat or eat.”
“In Germany, electricity has become a luxury good,” said the video, showing headlines from German publications Der Spiegel, Die Welt and Focus. “800,000 homes are unable to pay their electric bills. It’s called the ‘second rent.’”