Memorandum on the Paris Climate Accord
Memorandum on the Paris Climate Accord
To: Donald Trump, President of the United States
From: Michael Herlihy, Secretary of State
Date: April 28, 2018
Re: Paris Climate Accord
Introduction:
The Paris Climate Accord was a historical agreement that was made in 2015 and signed into effect in 2016. This agreement was to combat climate control around the world. This Accord was historical as 195 countries have signed it into place. In 2017, Mr. President you announced the United States’ intention to withdraw from this agreement. The United States while negotiating was one of the main countries to be a part of this agreement. Although we are not able to pull out right away and will be able to do so at the earliest in November of 2019. I strongly encourage you, Mr. President, to reconsider.
Leaving this agreement only shows that we do not want to work towards protecting our environment. If we as a country want to be respected by others than we need to be able to stick with former agreements that were made. Climate change does exist whether you want to admit it or not. I know you are not a strong advocate for reducing pollution but for the greater good of the country, Mr., President please rethink the withdrawal of the Paris Climate Accord. This agreement is a step in the right direction towards stopping the rise in temperature and leaving it will be catastrophic for the United States.
Evidence:
Although the Earth’s climate has changed throughout its entire existence, it cannot be stressed enough that the current rise in temperature isn’t just because of the Earth. This is a man-made problem that cannot be overlooked. The change that we have seen is something that has never happened before. This is mainly caused by the increase in the production of carbon dioxide as well as other emissions. One stats shows that out of the 17 warmest years recorded 16 of them have been since 2001. This has resulted in the melting of our polar ice caps which in turn also increases the sea level globally. Something that also needs to be looked at is extreme weather events that are results of this change. This has been seen in the United States with bomb cyclones and massive hurricanes.
The Paris Climate Agreement has a goal of holding the increase of the average temperature of the world. It also wants to adapt to the impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience. The agreement also made it so that richer countries would aid poorer countries in adapting and switching to renewable energy. It also hopes to limit greenhouse gases emitted by humans to the same level that trees and oceans can absorb naturally. Also, it would review each country’s contributions every five years to see what needs to be done more to combat climate change. The agreement was signed by 176 countries the day it was available to be signed with 20 other countries announcing that they would join as well.
Recommendations:
Pulling out of the Paris Climate Accord will be detrimental to not only the United States but the rest of the world. This could quite possibly show to the world that we do not want to work with them as we negotiated this agreement and now are leaving as soon as we joined. This in itself shows that we are not serious about the deals that are being made. Another problem with this is that countries that we want to have the upper hand with i.e. China and Russia are still apart of the deal and are looking more committed than we do. That in itself is not something that should be taken lightly. The United States should be seen as one of the world leaders but pulling out of this agreement gets rid of this notion.
I recommend Mr. President to commit to the agreement. Money should not be an issue as we are not spending much at all for the agreement. It would be in good faith that we show the world that we are not leaving this world order that we created over 70 years ago. The time is now that we can show the rest of the world that we are still here and ready to work with them. This is a pressing matter even if you do not want to put an emphasis on climate change. You cannot deny that there isn’t climate change as we have seen it. Leaving is not the path we want to take as this is one of the most important matters for the future of this country.
I certainly think a periodic review of each country's contributions is necessary, but I feel that you are not addressing the concerns of the U.S. enough, since politics are perhaps the one major obstacle to any environmental action. China and Russia are still a part of the deal because they don't have to pay anything, and getting free money from the West would help them industrialize further, especially China. On the other hand, being one of the few countries to reject the treaty might be the "lead by example" course of action. I also disagree that $3 billion is small. I feel that the U.S. can invest that money into a domestic project that reduces its own greenhouse emissions, and that with as large of an economy as countries like China have, they can do the same.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the United States should not back out of the agreement. Climate change is a global issue that needs to be addressed by everyone. All countries need to work together to limit total carbon emissions, especially the US considering we are responsible for much of the total emissions. Pulling out of the agreement will also have detrimental political repercussions. If the US is seen backing out of this agreement, it will look like the US is not respectable, won't stay true to its word in any future agreements.
ReplyDeleteI agree. If we back out of the deal, it would make the United States seem like a country that is not willing to work with others. This would make deals or negotiations harder down the line.
ReplyDelete