First nation out leads the way:
Lisa Friedman, New York Times
Trump serves notice to quit Paris Aggreement
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration formally notified the United Nations on Monday that it would withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change, leaving global climate diplomats to plot a way forward without the cooperation of the world’s largest economy.
The action, which came on the first day possible under the accord’s complex rules on withdrawal, begins a yearlong countdown to the United States exit…
A true leader, Trump didn’t wait for herd approval, just made his own path.
But why does it take so many years to get out? It’s a non-binding, non-treaty with no legal teeth except ones countries domestically screw on themselves. The wording is “should” not “shall”. Most nations aren’t even aiming to meet their own targets, and their commitment is essentially to turn up and renegotiate their commitment, and get told off for not fawning enough, whether or not their actual target reductions in carbon emissions are met or not. Is there any reason why this can’t be extinguished overnight except that the deep state bureaucrats knew the agreement was so disadvantageous they’d have to tie nations down to stop them leaving?
Paris was only ever a PR theater stunt — the point being for big-government-actors to use it to win domestic funding or to hang domestic legislation off it.
It’s worth remembering that the fourth largest nation in the world, Indonesia, has also threatened to pull out of the Paris Agreement. And when asked, 48% of Australians were happy to pull out of Paris. No biggie.
In other news, last week Sri Lanka scrapped its carbon tax
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka will scrap a controversial carbon tax from the end of the year, under tax changes passed in parliament.
Sri Lanka brought a carbon tax for cars escalating for older cars used by less affluent persons who drive less.
But Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera has now scrapped the tax. However it will be charged for 2019.
h/t Dave B, Pat, Marvin W, Joe Bast Heartland
Related:
- All the major nations are failing to meet their Paris targets says Nature paper
- Australia needs to sacrifice cows and sheep for Paris too
- Just like that: 48% of Australians happy to pull out of Paris