GLOBAL IMPACT
With the US repealing its participation in the Paris Agreement, countries’ faith in the pact, which binds 196 nations to a goal of keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times, will be “shaken”, he added.
“Many of these countries actually also have to step up on the climate initiative, and I don’t see them doing that (now),” he said.
This is despite scientists declaring earlier this month that the planet for the first time breached the threshold last year. Beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius, the climate crisis – which has seen weather extremes wiping out homes and people – is expected to be more than people can handle.
Dr Rao similarly noted that the US, as the world’s largest economy, has a very large and important international voice, and therefore has a huge impact on what other people do.
However, the procedure will take almost a year, meaning that the US will still be a part of the COP30 discussions later this year in Brazil, she pointed out.
“But it remains to be seen just how engaged the nation will be,” she said.
US’ international climate finance responsibilities will also cease, she noted, reversing the Biden administration’s efforts.
In 2021, the US government pledged to scale up US international public climate finance to developing countries four-fold from its highest levels to over US$11 billion per year by 2024.
“What that means is that then the financing available to the developing economies to deal with climate change themselves and to try and adopt cleaner energy measures for themselves will now become much less,” said Dr Rao.
Another indirect impact is that across the world, countries will prioritise growth and investment over cutting back emissions, as they see the US as an unreliable ally amid its protectionist stance, said Prof Dutt. This will increase the need to burn coal, which produces carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide – powerful greenhouse gases that blanket the Earth and trap the sun’s heat.
