In a virtual climate summit, US President Joe Biden unveiled a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2030. He said the country would need to make significant changes to its transportation and energy sectors to meet this target.
Biden said that the country would be on track to achieve a net-zero emissions economy by 2050 under his plan. He made the announcement during the opening of the two-day summit, which was attended by 40 world leaders.
A White House official noted that the US would be able to achieve this goal through various pathways. For instance, Biden has pledged to make the country's power sector emissions free by 2035.
The leaders of various countries expressed their delight at the US' decision to rejoin the global community. South Africa's president, Cyril Ramaphosa, referred to Biden's speech as a game-changing moment for the country. The UK's Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, also praised the president's plan to address climate change.
Although the leaders of various countries warned about the threat of climate change, they only unveiled a few new measures to address the issue. For instance, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that his country would reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 to 45% by 2030. Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga also pledged to reduce emissions by 46% by 2030.
John Barrasso, a Wyoming Republican, criticized Biden's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2030. He noted that it would put the US at a disadvantage globally.
In a statement, Barrasso criticized Biden's plan, saying that it would put the US at a disadvantage. He noted that China and Russia would continue to increase their emissions, which would result in higher energy prices and fewer jobs.
After four years of denialism and dust, the Biden administration has finally acknowledged the seriousness of climate change, according to Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass. He noted that the target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by half is feasible and can be achieved with the necessary political will and funding.
The US is the second-largest producer of carbon dioxide in the world. In 2018, it produced about 5.41 billion metric tons of this greenhouse gas. China, on the other hand, is responsible for almost twice as much emissions.
According to experts, the world's major economies must reduce their emissions to avoid the rise of global temperatures that are expected to exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius. Although the US and other countries are already experiencing the effects of climate change due to extreme weather events, scientists warned that the effects of global warming would become irreversible if the temperature exceeds this level.
As the US' leader on climate change, Biden has vowed to be the country's most aggressive president. He has already taken various steps to address the issue, such as halting the Keystone XL Pipeline's construction.
Antony Blinken, the State Department's secretary of state, said in a speech that the Biden-Harris administration would do "more than any administration in history" to address the climate crisis. He noted that the country's future depends on the actions that people make today.
Biden's advisers have also responded to the criticism by pointing out the various economic benefits of a clean-energy economy.
In his speech, Blinken noted that climate change is both a threat and an opportunity, as it can help build a healthier society and regain its competitive edge against China.
He also noted that the US is currently falling behind in the race for global leadership due to its lack of leadership in renewable energy.
China is currently the world's largest producer and exporter of renewable energy technology. It has also been noted that it holds over a third of the world's renewable energy patents.
Blinken warned that the US could miss out on the opportunity to shape the climate of the future by not catching up. He noted that the country would lose out on thousands of jobs and suffer from the effects of climate change.
The preceding is a summary of an article that originally appeared on Daily Cable.
