Comment on US emissions reductions pledge
Tough carbon cuts can bring economic benefits, says Richard Black
By George Smeeton
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Commenting on the news that the United States has submitted its emissions reductions pledge to the United Nations, Richard Black, director of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, highlighted new research showing that tough carbon cuts can bring economic benefits.
Richard Black said: “INDCs are basically countries making official what they’ve already pledged to do, so they’re unlikely to contain any surprises – certainly the US one didn’t.
“But as with the recent EU pledge, it’s questionable whether governments are being ambitious enough, given recent evidence looking at the benefits of cutting emissions quickly.
“One study for example shows that tightening the EU pledge so it’s compatible with the internationally agreed 2 Celsius global warming target would save Europe $140 billion each year by reducing fossil fuel imports, prevent 40,000 premature deaths from air pollution and create 350,000 full-time green jobs.
“As other countries put their INDCs forward, it’ll be interesting to see whether they’re factoring in the economic benefits of tighter emission cuts."