U.S., Canadian, And Other World Leaders Commit To New Climate Measures

On June 19, President Joe Biden met with the leaders of 19 other countries, which, together, represent 80 percent of the world’s economy, population, and planet-warming emissions. After the meeting, the group announced separate agreements on several climate initiatives.

According to The Hill, the United States, Canada, the European Union (EU), and 10 other countries unveiled an initiative that seeks to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. Specifically, the new initiative aims to eliminate routine flaring — process where companies burn excess natural gas that’s a byproduct of oil production — by 2030. The countries and supporting organizations have announced $59 million in dedicated funding and in-kind assistance in support of the initiative. The other 10 countries are: Argentina, Denmark, Egypt, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, and Oman.

Other initiatives were:

• With seven other countries, President Biden announced a plan to make 50 percent of new cars sold in their jurisdictions electric by 2030.
• The United States and six other countries also pledged to collectively invest $90 billion by 2026 to build commercial-scale demonstration projects that are needed this decade to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. In support of this goal, the United States and the European Union will make investments totaling more than $50 billion.
• The United States and Norway launched an effort aimed at encouraging emissions reductions from the shipping sector by 2050. These initiatives will help put the international shipping sector on a pathway toward full decarbonization by 2050.

Read more from the White House here.