US greenhouse-gas emissions fell less than 1% per year on average from 2005 to 2019, a trend that is not going to cut it, according to the Fifth National Climate Assessment and first since 2018. Emissions need to decline more than 6% per year on average to prevent global warming of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels by 2050, according to the report compiled by more than 750 experts from every state and territory and reviewed by 14 federal agencies, per the Wall Street Journal. It finds advancements in carbon dioxide removal and hydrogen fuel technologies will be needed to meet US emissions targets, but there are also steps we can and must take now, through investment in clean energy, for example. More:
- 'The ultimate threat': Climate change is "the ultimate threat to humanity," President Biden said Tuesday, per the New York Times, in announcing more than $6 billion in funding to strengthen the electric grid, reduce flooding, improve water reliability, and boost carbon-free energy. "We need to do more and move faster," he said, adding the assessment shows "in clear scientific terms, that climate change is impacting all regions, all sectors of the United States."