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US President Joe Biden tried to finalize the next step in the world’s response to rapidly deteriorating climate change in a private virtual meeting with a small group of other global leaders.
Biden announced on Friday a new U.S. and European commitment to reduce climate-damaging methane leaks.
Biden said at the beginning of the meeting that the results of this year’s scientists’ research has become increasingly severe, that the world is approaching the point where the climate damage caused by burning oil, natural gas, and coal has become catastrophic and irreversible, “representing the red of mankind.” Code”.
“We must act, we must act now,” Biden said.
The White House provided a record of the president’s opening speech in private meetings.
Biden quoted his Trip earlier this month In California, with rising temperatures and worsening droughts, firefighters have been fighting larger, more violent and deadly wildfires almost all year round; to the northeastern United States and the Gulf Coast, where Hurricane Ida and its The flood killed dozens of people because of climate change.
Biden evoked the “destroy and destruction” he saw in the United States, the large-scale flooding in Europe, and other global destruction caused by climate warming.
The United Nations warns of “catastrophic” global warming
On the occasion of the incident, the United Nations issued a report predicting “catastrophic” Temperature rise 2.7C By the end of this century “unless immediate action is taken.”
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement: “This goes against the promise made six years ago to achieve the 1.5 degrees Celsius target of the Paris Agreement.” Statement comment On the report. “Failure to achieve this goal will be measured by the loss of a large number of lives and livelihoods.”
The Biden administration rejoined the Paris Agreement signed by the former president Donald Trump withdraws, Said Friday’s meeting as an opportunity for some world leaders to develop strategies to achieve large-scale and rapid reductions in climate-damaging oil and coal emissions.
The government is also trying to rebuild the Energy and Climate Forum, a major US economy, which is a climate organization established by President Barack Obama and revived by Biden as an important platform for international climate negotiations.
Friday’s meeting follows the larger virtual White House climate summit in April. Dozens of heads of government-representing allies and competitors, as well as economies of size and size-made speeches on the need to take action on climate change. Extensive speech.
The list of participants provided on Friday included only a dozen leaders: Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, the European Commission, the European Council, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United Nations.
China, India, Russia, and the United States are the countries that emit the most harmful gases to the climate in the production and combustion of oil, natural gas, and coal.
There is no news about their leaders participating. However, the White House said in a statement that Biden had instructed his climate envoy, John Kerry, to hold ministerial climate meetings with China, Germany, India and Russia. It did not provide other direct details.
Climate advocates emphasized the importance of a coordinated united front between the United States and Europe and Asia to induce China to reduce its use of dirty coal more quickly-especially in thermal power plants.
Methane reduction drive
Biden also discussed a new US initiative with the European Union and other countries to launch a “Global Methane Commitment” to reduce methane emissions 30% By the end of this decade.
Methane is one of the most powerful factors in climate damage, gushing out of countless uncovered oil and gas rigs, leaking gas pipelines and other oil and gas facilities.
Biden said: “This will not only quickly reduce the rate of global warming, but it will also produce very valuable collateral benefits, such as improved public health and agricultural production.”
Fred Krupp, chairman of the non-profit Environmental Protection Foundation, stated that reducing methane pollution is the fastest and most effective strategy to slow the rate of warming.
A 30% reduction in methane pollution should only be “the entry point for this critical conversation. Many countries can and should aim for higher goals,” Krupp told The Associated Press.
This commitment comes at a time when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will propose stricter regulations on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, as stipulated in one of Biden’s first executive orders.
It is expected that in the next two weeks, the new rules may be stricter than the Obama-era standards established in 2016. After Congress took unusual steps to invalidate the Trump era EPA’s removal of methane protection measures, the Obama standards were restored in June.
Pending EPA rules are expected to limit methane emissions from new and existing wells, including hundreds of thousands of old wells that are not subject to federal regulations under current laws.
Friday’s meeting precedes the UN’s major climate Glasgow Summit November. “We have to bring our greatest ambitions to Glasgow. For those who have not done so, time is running out,” Biden said.
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