The United States And Climate Change

The United States looks favorably upon the change in regime structure for paris which creates an avenue for setting nationally appropriate goals for climate mitigating rather than global goals that failed in the past. In the upcoming convention the US will work to meet financial commitment goals without compromising domestic industry or economy. To an extent, the US also recognizes the common but differentiated responsibility of developing countries. The United States remains committed to the goal delineated by the Copenhagen Accord of 2 ° C above pre-industrial levels and strives to achieve this goal through mitigation and financing adaptation and recognizes that comprehensive climate action includes extending support to populations adversely affected by climate change.

In regard to mitigation, the United States proposes that each party of the new agreement define the nature of its contribution to the global effort to limit and/or reduce greenhouse emissions. In other words, contributions should be nationally determined by each party, taking into account national circumstances, capabilities, mitigation opportunities, and level of development. Contributions should be specific and clear. To ensure that schedules are easily understood, all parties should include accompanying information such as a time frame, base year, sectors covered, the percentage of national emissions covered and the overall emissions reductions anticipated. Contributions should be quantitative, or quantifiable. Parties should be required to regularly report their progress of implementing their schedules. Reporting should be based on a single system, but should acknowledge the presence of built-in flexibility given the nature of each parties circumstance and c...

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...tates can support the position that all parties in a position to do so should commit to assisting said populations through compensation or relocation. We expect the revisions and our tentative approach toward the climate-vulnerable will be supported by Australia, based upon Immigration Minister Scott Morrison’s strict adherence to refugees status and New Zealand, following their ruling against the first potential climate refugee on grounds that environmental threats did not fit the current criteria for asylum. The US seeks a clear legal framework for this new class of refugee–and the global responsibility toward them–to increase the political feasibility of extending aid and resettlement. In the interest of cultural continuity, the US is amenable to providing a portion of aid necessary to facilitate relocation within refugees’ home country or to neighboring states.