Even though the Trump administration in Washington has said it intends to withdraw from the Paris accord, the US as a whole is still working to keep the pledge, according to a September 12 article in the LA Times by California Governor Jerry Brown and Michael Bloomberg.
“In fact,” the authors point out, “since the White House announced its intention to withdraw from the Paris agreement, more than 3,000 U.S. cities, states, businesses and other groups have declared their commitment to the Paris agreement. We are tracking their progress through an initiative called America's Pledge. Together, these groups form the third-largest economy in the world, and they represent more than half the total U.S. population. They have been ramping up actions to cut carbon pollution and move toward the goals in the Paris agreement, just as the rest of the world is doing.
“In red states and blue states, goals have been set and are being met. Orlando, Fla., is aiming to get 100% of its energy from clean sources and is on track to hit 20% by 2020. Los Angeles has cut emissions by 26% and counting. By next year, Texas will get more energy from solar and wind than from coal. Pennsylvania enacted tougher rules to prevent methane leaks from its gas wells. Colorado’s largest power utility announced plans to accelerate retirement of one-third of its coal plants and replace them with clean energy. And Walmart aims to shift 20% of its truck fleet to electric vehicles within five years.”
In the meantime, California and other states have filed a lawsuit challenging the EPA's assault on fuel efficiency. And in any case, they note, the US cannot legally withdraw from the Paris agreement until November 2020.
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