Why the Paris Climate Treaty is important in 5 graphics

Why the Paris Climate Agreement is important in 5 diagrams

andrea thompson

Hours after taking the oath of office, President Donald Trump, in one of a series of executive orders, pulled the United States from the Paris Agreement, an international agreement aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worst impacts. signed an executive order to withdraw the country again. About the Earth’s climate.

The move comes on the heels of Earth experiencing the first year on record in which average global temperatures exceeded pre-industrial levels by 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). Under the landmark 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, countries agreed to strive to limit temperature rise to below 1.5 degrees Celsius and “well below” 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit).

President Trump’s executive order, titled “Put America First in International Environmental Agreements,” requires the United Nations to immediately notify the United Nations of the U.S. withdrawal, which it says will be “effective immediately.” Under the agreement, each country cannot fully withdraw from the agreement until one year has passed since the notification. Trump also pulled the United States out of the deal during his first term, and the withdrawal took effect in November 2020. Former President Joe Biden brought the United States back into the agreement in February 2021.

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It remains unclear how the withdrawal will unfold due to discrepancies in the timing of President Trump’s order and the terms of the agreement. But the order also calls for a halt to U.S. contributions to international climate finance. And from this directive and others issued by President Trump, it is clear that the new administration is seeking to undo much of Biden’s climate efforts and further increase the already high cost of climate financing. It is. U.S. oil and gas production levels.

Many climate scientists and advocates have condemned withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and warned of dire consequences for failing to address the climate crisis. “This short-sighted action shows a disregard for science and the well-being of people around the world, including Americans, who are already losing their homes, livelihoods, and loved ones as a result of climate change.” said executive Jonathan Foley. said the director of Project Drawdown, a nonprofit organization focused on climate action, in a recent news release.

Below are five diagrams that illustrate why the Paris Agreement and its goals are important.

2024 was the first year on record for global temperatures to be 1.5°C warmer than pre-industrial times (generally defined as the late 19th century). This shows how much temperatures have risen as humans continue to burn fossil fuels, pumping heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. And it shows how close the world is to meeting the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. However, this standard has not yet been formally exceeded, as the agreement takes into account global average temperatures over many years. So if countries and industries act quickly and ambitiously, there is still time to limit warming as much as possible.

We are already feeling the pain of climate change from heat building up in the Earth’s atmosphere, most clearly seen in extreme heat events. In the United States alone, residents went from experiencing two heat waves each summer in the 1960s to more than six today, with heat waves now averaging four days long instead of three. Masu. The heat wave season has also extended from 20 days in the 1960s to more than 70 days now.

Heat waves are the deadliest weather event in the United States, and the threat to public health will only increase as global temperatures rise. Therefore, any additional warming the world avoids will have a tangible effect.

Other disasters such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires are also being exacerbated by climate change. Coupled with changes in where people live and where infrastructure is built, disaster costs are steadily rising, contributing to the insurance crisis.

When the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration began tracking disaster cost data in the 1980s, a disaster causing at least $1 billion in damages occurred in the United States about every three months. Currently, such disasters occur approximately every three weeks. And the dollar value of the costs of these events is almost certainly underestimated, with political rhetoric often pointing out the costs of transitioning to clean energy while overlooking the ballooning costs of inaction. It highlights that there is.

These costs, and the pain of the disaster that precipitated them, will be borne by today’s younger generations. They will experience many more heat waves, droughts, floods, wildfires, and other deadly and destructive disasters over their lifetimes than their parents or grandparents ever experienced. However, how much that risk increases depends on how much global warming society tolerates. Achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement would clearly reduce risks.

The United States’ involvement in international climate negotiations, particularly the Paris Agreement, puts pressure on other countries to be more ambitious and because the United States is “overspending” on a portion of the world’s carbon budget. It has been considered important for a long time. Along with other countries that led the industrial revolution, the United States has acquired great wealth, but we have assumed a disproportionate share of the responsibility for the amount of carbon that humans put into the atmosphere and meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. I did. It remains to be seen how the US’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement will affect the actions and goals of other countries.