Many scientists and experts have reacted with shock and alarm to the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to drastically limit the powers of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate emissions from power plants, widely recognized as a crucial tool for fighting climate change. In the historic Paris Agreement, the United States pledged to meet certain targets, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in reducing emissions which cause global warming. Is the U.S. on track to meet its Paris NDCs? Or will it break its promises on climate change?
Dr. Joanna Lewis, Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor of Energy and Environment and Director of the Science, Technology and International Affairs Program at Georgetown University, says, "It looks like it's possible for the United States to meet this target, we're still a few years off. But given the fact that the Trump administration rolled back a lot of the policies that were put in place to meet that target, there still is more that the United States needs to do to make sure its targets Paris target is achieved. And, of course, the Biden administration, when President Biden was elected, one of the first things he did was to put a team in place to propose a new NDC, a more ambitious NDC. [...] But there will, of course, be a lot of challenges within the United States, you know, given the real lack of bipartisan support for ambitious climate action."
This interview was recorded in 2021.
