U.S. Climate Alliance issues short-lived climate pollutant challenge

On the anniversary of its founding the U.S. Climate Alliance is targeting short-lived climate pollutants with a challenge to governments, businesses and other actors to commit to reducing their emissions of these powerful climate forcers, and to bring these commitments to the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, California this September.

Reducing short-lived climate pollutants is a critical component to meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement, the Alliance said in a statement.

“Reducing emissions of potent short-lived climate pollutants provides outsized global climate benefits in the near-term, along with significant health, agricultural, and ecosystem benefits. Targeted commitments and strategies to rapidly and significantly reduce these pollutants, which include methane, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and black carbon, will minimize the risks of climate change and maximize local benefits associated with addressing it. Immediate action on these pollutants is necessary to limit the global temperature increase to well below 2°C, and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C.

“In the coming months, the Alliance will work to comprehensively address short-lived climate pollutants, including through new and continued actions to improve emissions inventories; quickly identify and address methane leaks and “super emitters;” promote energy efficiency, including in refrigeration and cooling; phasedown the use of HFCs; improve management of organic and agricultural waste streams; and define other targets and measures to rapidly reduce emissions of these potent pollutants.”

The U.S. Climate Alliance is a bipartisan coalition of governors committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Smart, coordinated state action can ensure that the United States continues to contribute to the global effort to address climate change.

You can find out more about the challenge here.