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Environment

U.S., China Strike Climate Change Deal To Slash Emissions Of CO2 And Other Greenhouse Gases

Global Warming: Bilateral accord sets stage for completion of a global treaty in 2015

by Glenn Hess
November 12, 2014

In a surprise joint announcement, the U.S. and China today unveiled a broad range of plans to fight climate change, including new targets to curb emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

The world’s two biggest economies—and two largest emitters of greenhouse gases—have achieved “an historic agreement,” President Barack Obama said at a news conference in Beijing on the final day of a three-day visit to China.

Under the agreement, the U.S. vowed to cut its emissions 26–28% below 2005 levels before 2025. In comparison, the U.S. in 2009 committed to ratchet down its emissions to 17% below 2005 levels by 2020.

Meanwhile, President Xi Jinping of China said his country would “peak,” or begin to taper down, its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. China will also aim to get 20% of its energy from sources that emit zero carbon—which could include solar, wind, and hydropower—by the same year.

The deal represents “a major milestone in the U.S.-China relationship,” Obama declared. “It shows what’s possible when we work together on an urgent global challenge.”

Under the new bilateral agreement, the U.S. and China committed to work together on a series of initiatives, including the following:

The launch of a large-scale pilot project in China to study carbon capture and sequestration.

Phasing down the use of hydrofluorocarbons, which are potent greenhouse gases used as refrigerants.

An effort to increase trade in “green” goods, focusing on energy-efficient products and climate-resilient infrastructure.

U.S. officials say the commitments, the result of months of negotiations, should encourage other countries to set aggressive targets and will inject momentum into talks on a new global climate change treaty. Another round of talks is scheduled for next month in Lima, Peru. Negotiators hope to conclude a global pact in December 2015 at a meeting in Paris.

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