Bloomberg philanthropy to cover U.S. climate dues | Commodities

By Valerie Volcovici

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s philanthropy and different U.S. funders stated on Thursday they may cowl U.S. financial obligations to the UN climate framework after President Donald Trump known as for the U.S. to withdraw – for a second time – from the Paris climate settlement.

Bloomberg, a media billionaire who additionally serves as a UN particular envoy on climate change, introduced Bloomberg Philanthropies will as soon as again cowl the quantity of money the U.S. owes every years to the United Nations Framework Conference on Local weather Change and make sure the U.S. meets its emissions reporting obligations to the physique regardless of the pullback from international climate diplomacy below Trump.

KEY QUOTE

“From 2017 to 2020, during a period of federal inaction, cities, states, businesses, and the public rose to the challenge to uphold our nation’s commitments—and now, we are ready to do it again,” stated Bloomberg, who added that his group additionally invests in supporting native leaders, bolstering information to trace emissions and building coalitions throughout public and personal sectors to hold on U.S. climate motion.

WHY IT MATTERS

Trump stated he would transfer to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate settlement and finish all of the nation’s worldwide climate financial commitments in a single of his first government orders on Monday. To fill the void, a quantity of U.S. states, cities and companies dedicated to proceed to realize Paris climate targets.

KEY NUMBERS

The U.S. paid its 7.2 million euro ($7.4 million) required contribution to the UNFCCC secretariat that for 2024, and likewise paid off a 3.4 million euro arrears for 2010-2023.

The secretariat, set up below the 1992 UNFCCC treaty, is the world’s key physique for coordinating worldwide efforts to cut back climate-warming emissions and staging summits the place international locations can maintain each other accountable. It’s experiencing a extreme funds shortfall, in response to a Reuters evaluation of paperwork from the world physique.