Climate change and UK political backlash

Watching the Tides - Marchel Alexandrovich

When it comes to climate change, one consequence of the breakdown of the political relationship between Europe and the US is that it shifts the discussion from how the world achieves net zero to how the individual economies will deal with climate risk. The Trump administration has no interest in phasing out fossil fuels and cutting GHG emissions. Lower emissions may yet materialise, if the cost of renewables continues to fall, if there is a greater focus on natural disasters, and if there is action at the US state level. But at the federal level, tackling climate change will not be a US priority for the next four years, at least.

For now, Europe’s commitment to reduce emissions remains firm. However, in aggregate, the EU27 accounts for just 6.1% of world greenhouse emissions (the US is at 11.3%, the UK is at 0.7%) and there is a limit to how much its actions will directly affect future global warming.

The more global climate policy diverges, the more likely it is that the NGFS’s “Fragm…