Ahead of the crucial climate meet in Paris, Centre for Science and Environment has slammed the US 'climate action plan', saying that Washington's "business- as-usual" approach is putting the world at "deadly risk" and shifting the burden of fighting climate change to nations like India.
"The business-as-usual approach of the US means shifting of burden of fighting climate change to nations like India," CSE said in its analysis of the US's Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC), or voluntary cuts. It noted that there is "no evidence" of a policy driven downward trend in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
In the run up to the Paris conference, to be held between from November 30 to December 11, CSE also said that the US has been the "biggest divisive force" in the UN climate change negotiations.
It said that the "no-domestic-action" approach of the US has transformed the UN Convention from a forum where every nation was supposed to take action based on 'common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR)' and respective capabilities to a forum where nations are competing in a race to the bottom.
CSE's analysis on the US's INDC on GHG emissions said that this also puts the world at "deadly risk", because of the impacts of changing climate which is already evident in countries like India, where erratic weather is becoming the new "normal" leading to huge losses for the poorest.
In a "severe indictment" of the US INDC, CSE said that the US is not doing anything extra for climate change as most of the changes are happening naturally and automatically because of economic reasons and market forces and improvements are being "squandered away" because of increased growth and consumption.
"The US INDC is neither ambitious nor equitable. Our analysis shows that the key economic sectors of the US economy -- energy, transport, industry etc -- are operating and would continue to operate till 2030 in a business-as-usual way, even as the rest of the world gears up to fight climate change," said Sunita Narain, CSE Director General while releasing the report.
Every country, in the run up to the Paris climate change summit, is submitting its INDCs. The US has already submitted its climate action plan in which it has pledged to cut greenhouse gases by 26-28 per cent by 2025 against the 2005 level.
India too recently submitted its INDCs in which it has pledged cutting down emissions upto 35 per cent by 2030 from 2005 levels, a 75 per cent jump over its present voluntary commitment.
