Faster is better for Planet Earth
Accompanied by 197 little kids, 175 leaders of the world's nations signed the Paris climate change agreement Friday at the United Nations, signaling their countries' intentions to combat global warming.
The children, including the granddaughter of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, were brought along as junior representatives of the generations that will be affected by rising seas and dangerous weather because of greenhouse gas emissions that the agreement is designed to cut back.
The U.N. ceremony took place on Earth Day, which was the first day that nations could sign up. The number of signatories was the highest for any United Nations agreement on its first day. That kind of momentum after years of wrangling delay needs to be kept going, because the planet keeps getting hotter. This year is predicted to be the hottest on record.
For the agreement to go into effect, each nation must conduct the ratification process that makes international agreements official policy for its government. That includes approval by the U.S. Senate, which has a terrible track record of tabling international treaties and agreements, including the one that coordinates operations in the Arctic — where melting polar ice is changing the ocean and the continent.
To enter into force, the Paris Agreement needs formal acceptance by at least 55 countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions. At least 34 small and large countries representing 49 percent of greenhouse gas emissions have formally joined or committed to joining soon.
The goal of the agreement is, by the year 2100, to keep global warming "well below" 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) as compared to pre-industrial levels. To accomplish that, each nation annually updates its own target for reducing emissions. They also commit to replacing fossil fuels almost entirely with clean energy.
At the signing, Kerry and French President Francois Hollande said the power of the agreement is that it will spur private investment in developing renewable energy sources.
Nations have one year to sign the accord and then time to get it ratified and approved by their governments. The United States and China, which together account for 40 percent of greenhouse gases, have both said they will join within the one-year deadline. Both nations signed the document Friday.
This is good news, but it's early news. In the best-case scenarios, global warming won't be slowed before it affects coastlines, animal species, weather and health and safety. If the international community can get onboard, so must the Senate, where some of the Republican majority has balked. The world needs American inventiveness and initiative on this one.
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