President Biden has raised U.S. emissions reduction targets for the next 10 years, but the green energy push could be thwarted by the incoming administration of President-elect Trump.
In 2021, Biden set a climate goal to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 50% to 52% from 2005 levels by 2030.
However, the Paris Climate Agreement, to which the United States is currently a party, requires countries to submit their contributions to global emissions reductions every five years under Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Biden on Thursday set a new goal to further reduce emissions within the next decade in his final contribution to the global climate deal under the NDC, while President Trump hinted at the possibility of withdrawal.
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President Biden sets new US climate goals (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Biden’s new goal, formally submitted to the United Nations Climate Change Office, aims to cut emissions by 61-66% by 2035.
A second possible withdrawal from the Paris climate accord under the Trump administration could be different from the US’s first withdrawal.
Trump told Politico during the campaign that he would support withdrawing from the treaty once he takes office, which could impact new climate goals.
The Paris Climate Agreement was established at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference as a legally binding treaty between approximately 195 signatories committed to international cooperation on climate change.
President-elect Trump has indicated that he is open to withdrawing the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement when his second administration takes office. (Rick Scutelli/AP Photo)
The United States first signed the agreement in 2016 under former President Barack Obama, but it was withdrawn in 2020 under President Trump.
If President Trump chooses to withdraw from the agreement a second time, he may do so at a faster pace than the first time.
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President Trump also has the option of sending the treaty to the Senate for advice and consent, but that would require a two-thirds vote for the U.S. to rejoin the climate change agreement. This poses a potential hurdle for future administrations seeking to rejoin the United States.
Aubrey Spady is a writer for Fox News Digital.
