Cindy Carr, cindy.carr@sierraclub.org
Washington, D.C.-- Today, the United Nations climate body announced that despite climate commitments released to date by the 191 nations in the Paris Agreement, the world is on track to catastrophically warm by more than 2.7 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. This far exceeds the limit put forth by the IPCC to limit warming by 1.5°C, and follows on the IPCC’s most recent findings that even if the world cuts all carbon pollution in half by 2031 and invests in clean energy solutions that completely end all carbon pollution by 2050, we are already locked into the climate crisis for at least the next three decades, with the full severity of the crisis yet to be determined.
This news coincides with President Biden's virtual climate forum held this morning with top international emitters to curb methane pollution by 30 percent by 2030. Earlier this year, Biden pledged that the U.S. would reduce its greenhouse emissions by 50 to 52 percent by 2030.
In response, the Sierra Club’s International Climate and Policy Director Cherelle Blazer issued the following statement:
“The window to reduce climate emissions to effectively curb the humanitarian crises caused by climate catastrophes is almost closed. Unchecked pollution by the world’s top emitters is threatening our shared humanity and our planet on a daily basis. This is one of the last chances the world will have to take the bold, transformational action needed to ensure that we are able to recover from, prepare for, and mitigate the impacts of current and future climate disasters.
“The Sierra Club calls on the U.S. Congress to urgently pass bold reconciliation legislation, the Build Back Better Act, that centers climate action at its core by advancing major clean energy tax incentives, a Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP), a fee on methane polluters, funding for electric vehicles, environmental justice block grants, and a Civilian Climate Corps.
“And we call on the Biden Administration and the world’s top emitters to prioritize a just transition to a 100 percent clean energy economy, immediately stop all financing for fossil fuel projects globally, and restore the right of all people and every community to clean air, clean water, and a sustainable, healthy climate.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.