Climate Justice Groups: Latest U.S. Nationally Determined Contribution Falls Short of What’s Needed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

From ShiftUS and USCAN Fossil Fuel Phaseout Campaign

Press contacts: 

Natalie Lucas – natalie@thepeoplesjusticecouncil.org

Gavi Reiter – gavriela@ips-dc.org

Olivia Alperstein – olivia@ips-dc.org

Washington, D.C. — Two days after releasing “damning” studies on the climate, economic, and health impacts of liquified natural gas (LNG) exports, the Biden Administration released the United States’ Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), or contribution to the Paris Agreement, ahead of the incoming Trump Administration. While the NDC is the first to acknowledge the need to phase out fossil fuels, it fails to deliver at the speed or scale that science and justice demand.

While the NDC is meant to give Americans and subnational governments, tribal nations, and others an indicator of what we need to accomplish, this NDC falls short of what we need: a concrete, substantive action plan that builds global solidarity to address the climate crisis at scale in the U.S. and around the world. Science and justice require a domestic greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 80% from 2005 levels by 2035, and climate finance from the U.S for emissions reductions in the Global South that are equivalent to a 123% reduction of 2005 U.S. emissions by 2035, for a total of 203% emissions reduction below 2005 levels by 2035. These emissions reduction targets are obtained from the US Fair Shares NDC developed by a coalition of US civil society organizations.

Our national leaders are failing to do what science and justice demand on climate. State and local leaders must rise to the challenge. This NDC shouldn’t be the ceiling on their ambitions. In an environment in which democratically elected leaders are falling short of what’s required by justice and science, in this vacuum of leadership, there’s an opportunity for subnational leaders to stand up and rise to the challenge. Climate change is here. Subnational and local leaders, we urge you to not treat this as a ceiling on your ambition.

This is the last round of NDCs that could keep the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius in reach. While it is a step forward that the US NDC includes language on a transition from fossil fuel, this is insufficient when taking into account that the US is the world’s largest oil and gas producer and exporter today. As the largest producer of oil and gas, and the wealthiest country in history, the United States’ climate pledge falls short of commiting to phase out fossil fuels, paying its fair share for critical climate investments in the Global South, and leading the world away from climate catastrophe.

A U.S. NDC that truly matches the enormity of the global crisis we face, and the demands of science and justice, must make much bolder commitments, including:

• Ending all fossil fuel expansion immediately. No new drilling, fracking, pipelines, refineries, export terminals, and petrochemical and plastics manufacturing facilities.
• A managed decline of all fossil fuel production by 2031, with a just transition for impacted communities and workers.
• Adequate finance for a just transition to renewable energy in lower income countries who are economically dependent on producing and exporting fossil fuels. The US must pay their fair share for a global transition from fossil fuels.  The fair share of the U.S. for global climate finance should be $446 billion per year.

Wealthy countries are responsible for the vast majority of cumulative greenhouse gas emissions that are heating the planet, and have reaped huge economic benefits from fossil-fueled industrialization. The U.S., in particular, is the world’s largest cumulative greenhouse gas emitter, and the world’s largest oil and gas producer. The U.S.’s refusal to take responsibility for its outsized role in causing the climate crisis is disgraceful. It must step up and provide its fair share of climate financing.

Roishetta Ozane, Founder and Director of Vessel Project of Louisiana:

“As a Black mother of six living in Sulphur, Louisiana, where our homes are surrounded by industrial pollution and we bear the brunt of climate-induced disasters like hurricanes, I am deeply frustrated by the NDCs set by our leaders. They fail to reflect the urgency of what’s happening on the ground. Our communities are living the effects of climate change right now—our lives are not a bargaining chip for fossil fuel profits. We’ve been left out of the conversation for too long, and now, as climate devastation continues to worsen, we can no longer afford weak promises or empty rhetoric. The science is clear, and justice demands action. The NDCs we’ve been given are simply not enough. We deserve leaders who will push for real change, and I expect better from subnational governments who can lead where Washington has failed. Don’t treat these NDCs as a ceiling—treat them as a floor, and take us further. The time for half-measures is over.”

Rev Michael Malcom, Executive Director, People’s Justice Council:

“Where the heart is, your treasures will be also. We spend more money on the military and policing than we do on protecting the planet and people. I don’t  feel motivated to get out and celebrate this hypocrisy. It is not what we asked for and woefully short of what we need. We have a long way to go. We will never get there until we center care for planet and people over profit. “

Jean Su, Energy Justice Director and Senior Attorney, Center for Biological Diversity:

“It’s good to see a somewhat more ambitious pledge, but it’ll be up to states and other national leaders to defy Trump and move us quickly away from planet-heating fossil fuels. While Biden’s pledge rightly reiterates the need to get off dirty energy, the real work lies in rooting out the corrupting political influence of oil, gas and utilities. As climate deniers and corporate grifters sleaze into the White House, leaders at every level who actually care about the planet will have to fight twice as hard to hold polluters accountable for the economic and environmental havoc they’re wreaking around the globe.”

Victor Menotti, Interim US Coordinator for the Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice:

“Following the Biden team’s unabashed failure to deliver on its responsibilities to the Global South at last month’s COP29 in Baku, today’s updated NDC falls shamefully short of doing the US fair share. While the new US NDC pledges to cut its emissions by the amount the IPCC urges the world to do (60% by 2035), an equitable US contribution would mean cutting emissions over three times that amount. That’s because the US has by far the most cumulative emissions since 1850 – still twice that of China – while now producing 50% more crude oil daily than Saudi Arabia, and plans to expand LNG exports by over 200%.  This gap means the US failure to provide funding for the Global South takes the whole world further off track to limiting warming to 1.5C. Biden turned his back on the world at COP29 in Baku, but by acknowledging in his updated NDC what the US fair share actually is, he could have left a legacy of setting the target at a level where it is clear what we must do to deliver global climate justice.”

Basav Sen, Climate Policy Director, Institute for Policy Studies:

“The US commitment to a fossil fuel phaseout in its NDC is encouraging, but woefully insufficient without specific targets and timelines for phasing out fossil fuel production. The U.S. is the world’s largest producer and exporter of oil and gas, and the absence of a plan to phase out oil and gas production in its NDC is a major shortcoming that undermines the integrity of the document. Equally disturbingly, the US makes no commitment in the NDC to provide its fair share of funding for a just transition from fossil fuels in extraction-dependent low-income countries, and more broadly, climate finance for mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damage in all low-income countries. As the world’s largest cumulative greenhouse gas emitter, the US has a disproportionate share of responsibility for causing the climate crisis in the first place, and it is unacceptable for the US government to walk away from its responsibility.”

Hailey Campbell, Co-Executive Director, Care About Climate: 

“Thirty years ago, the US made a promise to future generations that they would do their part to tackle climate change under the UN Convention on Climate Change. The Rio Generations are here, and we are clinging to this round of NDCs as our last hope to keep 1.5 degrees alive and safeguard our future. 

Though the updated U.S. NDC raises ambition, it’s the bare minimum and far short of what’s needed: an equitable phase-out of fossil fuels as quickly as possible. Further, it makes a stronger effort to recognize the diverse social inequalities tied to climate change and lack of representation of gender-diverse groups in climate policy-making, however, it makes no effort to further address these gaps or acknowledge the role of our generation in the just transition. Leaving out targeted action to strengthen inclusion of marginalized voices, especially young peoples’, and provide pathways for a future free from fossil fuels means leaving out the solutions. 

The stakes are higher than they’ve ever been. The Rio Generations are here, and we are ready to fight for climate action and be part of the solutions. As the U.S. faces shifts in governance, we urge leaders at home and abroad to not wait another 30 years to act with urgency the climate crisis requires and to include us in their plans for our future. “

Natalie Lucas, Coordinator of the Fair Shares NDC Collaborative:

“The NDC offers a pathway for how America can move forward regardless of who is in office, and provides guidance to sub national governments. However, it is not nearly as ambitious as what we need to stay below 1.5 degrees celsius and to support developing nations to reach ambitious NDCs themselves. We as Americans need to take this into our own hands and do better.  Together we can shift the US to where we need to be, and to do our fair share of climate action.”

Collin Rees, U.S. Campaign Manager, Oil Change International:

“While we welcome President Biden’s acknowledgment that fossil fuels must be phased out, this plan falls devastatingly short of what science and justice demand. As the world’s largest historic polluter and current oil and gas producer, the U.S. has a unique responsibility to lead – yet this NDC ignores scientists’ warning that halting new fossil fuel projects is essential to keep warming below 1.5°C. Instead, it doubles down on a failed strategy that has already made America the world’s biggest fossil fuel expander, even as clean energy grows. With Trump looming, Biden must use his remaining time to lock in real climate action by rejecting LNG exports, shutting down the Dakota Access Pipeline, and ending international fossil fuel financing. The climate crisis is already devastating communities worldwide – especially in Global South nations who did the least to cause it. The clock is ticking – for the Biden administration and our planet.”

Sheelah Bearfoot, Environmental Health and Justice Program Manager at Poetry for Planet:

“I don’t know how the people responsible for this document sleep at night, knowing that they’re creating a global climate nightmare and sloppily trying to pass it off as the American dream. This NDC disregards the science explaining what the U.S. needs to do to help ensure the survival of humanity. The stakes truly are that high, and yet I’ve seen toddlers take more accountability for their actions that the US is taking for its continued leading role in the climate crisis. We need to phase out fossil fuels, we need tribal sovereignty respected, we need this government to act like they don’t want communities of color, frontline, and fenceline communities dead.”

Ashfaq Khalfan, Climate Justice Director, Oxfam America:

“With a climate denier about to enter the White House, the Biden Administration’s new national climate plan represents the bare minimum floor for climate action. It falls far short of the U.S.’s fair share of emissions reduction as the world’s largest historical polluter. The plan ignores critical targets for phasing out fossil fuel production and fails to commit funds to help disadvantaged communities in the Global South to reduce carbon pollution, recover from climate harm, and protect themselves from future disasters.

Oxfam urges Congress, states, cities, businesses, and civil society to do everything within their power to meet and exceed the targets in this plan, phase out fossil fuel production, and support climate justice in the Global South. Bold action at home will inspire confidence globally and send a powerful message that the U.S. will not abandon the fight for a livable and equitable future.”

Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN, Executive Director, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments:

“Nurses thank the Biden administration for releasing the NDC before leaving office, a critical step to setting the stage for ambitious subnational action to address the climate emergency. While this NDC framework shows increasing ambition, unfortunately, the targets outlined fall short. Nurses around the world are caring for those and are part of communities most impacted by climate change – we are seeing the human impacts that result from failure of leaders to act at the scale required. Nurses, aligned with science and climate justice groups, were calling for a greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 80% from 2005 levels by 2035, as a pathway for adequately protecting health in the face of worsening climate change. While a positive step forward that the NDC includes language on a transition from fossil fuels, it stops short of providing a pathway to phasing out fossil fuels and relies on unjust and dirty energy to meet emissions reduction – false solutions that significantly harm the health of communities. Nurses are now calling on subnational leaders to take up the mantle and increase ambition in line with what the science calls for and beyond what is outlined in the latest US NDC. Our lives depend on it.”

Dr. Ife Kilimanjaro, Executive Director, U.S. Climate Action Network:

“The U.S. commitment to reduce emissions by 61-66% below 2005 levels by 2035 is a positive step, but insufficient given this country’s historical responsibility for the climate crisis and what the science shows is necessary.  Success requires building on this with unprecedented coordination across all sectors, overcoming technological and financial barriers, consistent political support, and ensuring a just transition for all communities. Global cooperation also remains essential. We urge leaders at all levels to act with urgency and ambition to secure a livable planet for future generations.”

###