Guest essay by Eric Worrall
The Guardian fantasising how Biden might use the USA’s economic might to bully other nations on climate policy.
Biden as president would pursue climate ‘cheaters’ – and Australia could be among them
Scott Morrison has resisted a call to action from the UK – but the US would be hard to ignore
Richie Merzian
Wed 4 Nov 2020 10.46 AEDT
Whether Donald Trump loses or wins the presidential election, the US will officially withdraw from the Paris agreement on Wednesday. The US intention to withdraw was announced in mid-2017 and, exactly one year ago, formal notification was sent to the United Nations. It caps off four years of winding back climate action and the systematic dismantling of pollution safeguards across the country.
…
Within his first 100 days, Biden has committed to convene a climate world summit to directly engage the leaders of the major carbon-emitting nations of the world to persuade them to join the United States in making more ambitious national pledges, above and beyond the commitments they have already made. From the US, we could see a new, more ambitious emission reduction target than its underwhelming 26-28% by 2025 (if that sounds familiar, it’s because Australia has the exact same underwhelming target range but for 2030, and without the desire to improve it).
Importantly, Biden will pursue countries seen as “cheating” on climate action, using “America’s economic leverage and power of example”. Given the Morrison government’s insistence on using leftover carbon credits to avoid any credible emission reductions over the next decade – dubbed by the former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres as “cheating” and by numerous Australian law professors as legally baseless – Australia may be a target of that pursuit.
…
Morrison claims, “Our policies won’t be set in the United Kingdom, they won’t be set in Brussels, they won’t be set in any part of the world other than here.” I wouldn’t be so sure. When former president Obama pressured the Abbott government to do more on climate change in 2014, it had an impact. Let’s see what happens when Washington calls again.
Richie Merzian is director of the climate & energy program at independent think-tank The Australia Institute
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/nov/04/biden-as-president-would-pursue-climate-cheaters-and-australia-could-be-among-them
Second time in a week the Guardian has called on Biden to bully Australia on climate policy. Australia soundly rejected climate radicalism when we chose Scott Morrison over the climate first manifesto of then opposition leader Bill Shorten. But climate radicals like the Guardian are happy to celebrate the possibility the democratic will of the Australian people could be trampled if Biden wins.
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Biden and his comrades are gonna be cracking down on alot more than climate cheats — starting with freedom.
I think Xi and Putin can start their big push with Harris “in charge.”
Add another fake map with some more ancient dashed lines across Asia, the Pacific, Europe, and Indian Ocean now.
CLIMATE CHEATS?
IT IS OFFICIALLY ALLOWED BY THE PARIS AGREEMENTS.
Read on
WORLD AND US TOTAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION
https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/world-total-energy-consumption
World energy consumption is projected to increase to 736 quads in 2040 from 575 quads in 2015, an increase of 28%, according to the latest International Energy Outlook 2017 (IEO2017) from the US Energy Information Administration.
Most of this growth is expected to come from countries that are not in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, and especially from countries where demand is driven by strong economic growth, particularly in Asia.
Non-OECD Asia, which includes China and India, accounted for more than 60% of the world’s total increase in energy consumption from 2015 through 2040.
PARIS AGREEMENTS
China, India, and other developing Asian countries, and Africa, and Middle and South America need to use low-cost energy, such as coal, to be competitive.
They would not have signed up for “Paris”, if they had not been allowed to be more or less EXEMPT from the Paris agreements
NOTE: Obama agreed to commit the US to the Paris agreements, i.e., be subject to its financial and other obligations for decades.
However, he never submitted the commitment to the US Senate for ratification, as required by the US Constitution. Trump rescinded the commitment. It became effective 3 years later, one day after the US presidential elections on November 3, 2020.
NOTE: A UN Council would have determined a level of spending, say $500 billion/y, to be allocated by UN bureaucrats, to save the world from climate change. It would have assessed all members, likely in proportion to their GDPs. The non-OECD countries would continue to be more or less exempt from the Paris agreements. The US would have been assessed for more than $150 billion/y!
WORLD POPULATION AND PROSPERITY
It is very difficult, and expensive, to reduce world energy consumption, and associated CO2, with a growing world population, that requires a growing world economy to spread increased prosperity to more and more people.
It took 28 years to increase renewables from 7.0% in 1990 to 10.7% in 2018, requiring about $5.6 TRILLION, at an average investment of about $200 billion per year.
It would take 32 years to increase renewables from 10.7% in 2018 to 50% in 2050, requiring at least $49.5 TRILLION, at an average investment of at least $1.5 TRILLION per year
“NOTE: Obama agreed to commit the US to the Paris agreements, i.e., be subject to its financial and other obligations for decades.
However, he never submitted the commitment to the US Senate for ratification, as required by the US Constitution. Trump rescinded the commitment. It became effective 3 years later, one day after the US presidential elections on November 3, 2020.”
If Obama never submitted the Paris Agreements to Congress for ratification, then none of its provisions — including the three-year delay on withdrawal — are binding on the US, and all of the theatre about the US withdrawal being effective as of 11/4 is window dressing; the US left the Paris Agreement the moment Trump announced it.
the US left the Paris Agreement the moment Trump announced it
Effectively yes. The Paris agreement stopped being followed by the US the minute Obama was out of office, and as it was never ratified by congress there was nothing the Dems/left could do about it.
SEAN,
NOTE: Obama agreed to commit the US to the Paris agreements, i.e., be subject to its financial and other obligations for decades.
However, he never submitted the commitment to the US Senate for ratification, as required by the US Constitution. Trump rescinded the commitment. It became effective 3 years later, one day after the US presidential elections on November 3, 2020.
NOTE: A UN Council would have determined a level of spending, say $500 billion/y, to be allocated by UN bureaucrats, to save the world from climate change. It would have assessed all members, likely in proportion to their GDPs. The non-OECD countries would continue to be more or less exempt from the Paris agreements. The US would have been assessed for more than $150 billion/y!
Does that computation include provision for rebuilding all solar and windmill installations two-and-a-half times over 50 years? They only have a 20-year lifetime. Also, add the expensive and hassle of recycling the useless giant windmill parts and cracked worn solar panels.*
That reality gives “renewable” an entirely different meaning!
Also, how much of the earth’s surface will have to be covered by these things to power 50% of a world of 8-10 billion people.
*P.S. each windmill and solar ‘farm’ [dripping with sarcasm] requires a battery installation. Elon Musk will supply those. Add the cost of these, and for “renewing” these, to the overall budget. What’s the total now?
Those are good points, which I will add to my article
WORLD AND US TOTAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION
https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/world-total-energy-consumption
Here is the revision:
The above world and US capital costs do not include:
1) The cost of financing
2) The capital cost to replace short-life systems, such as heat pumps, EVs, batteries, etc.
3) Recycling the wind turbines, and solar panels and EV batteries
4) The cost to the earth’s surface covered by all these things to provide 50% of world total energy consumption by renewables, for 10 billion people, in 2050.
Each wind turbine system and solar system would require a battery installation. Elon Musk would supply those?
Also, as more and more quads are added to prior levels, adding quads becomes more difficult, and expensive.
NOTE: World renewable energy spending was more than $2.5 TRILLION for 2010-2019, an average of $250 billion/y
World RE spending was about $282.2 billion in 2019.
I assumed it was 280 billion in 2020, i.e., less due to COVID
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/global-clean-energy-investme…
From the article: “Second time in a week the Guardian has called on Biden to bully Australia on climate policy.”
Australia’s CO2 emissions are like a fly on an elephant, in comparison to other nations emission levels. Biden should leave Australia alone.
Now, if Biden wants to show he is serious about reducing CO2 emissions he should take the Chicoms to task and insist they reduce their emissions now, not starting in 2030, and Biden should threaten economic sanctions on the Chicoms if they don’t comply.
You think that would ever happen? No, that’s not going to happen. The Chicom’s would theaten to blackmail Biden over his previous corrupt money deals with Chinese businesses/military, if he tried to pressure them on anything. The Chicoms will get a pass on everything from Biden.
Biden’s specialty is Ukraine, ask Hunter, and likely war with Russia.
Not a nice thought for those central Europeans playing Navalny-roulette – beef in the sandwich, yet again. As Lavrov (I think) said, roulette with all chambers full.
Biden isn’t going to war with Russia. The only war he wants to wage is on American conservatives and conservatism.
If Guardian says it… definitely that is an illusion… a very poisonous illusion.
Let me be in the record again here… very easy to be confirmed… as it will not take decades or centuries as in the case of insanity of “climate change”, or months at most in the insanity of “covid-19”.
It is simply mater of days most few weeks.
There is no chance in hell or earth that a democratic candidate ends up to win the 2020 presidential USA election… neither Bi{nla}den or foolish Kamula will make it.
Ok… fair enough… only days till end result there.
Again, simply put, no any chance in hell or earth… easy to check out in few days or most few weeks.
cheers
Wishful thinking. No reason to believe Lyin’ Joe will do anything than fumble some speeches and glad-hand everybody.
Before Trump, nobody made Nato members live up to their obligations. After Trump, things go back to “normal” and the USA gets played by everyone.
It would be totally hilarious watching dementia Joe trying to meet with Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping. 🙂
And the thought him cowering at the feet of Mercel and the macaroon, is truly delightful.
“the USA gets played by everyone”
Even Maduro in Venezuela must be licking his lips at the prospect.
Come join us, he says. !
How can Biden “crack down on cheats” when he himself is the world’s biggest cheat – a reputation he has built-up over several shameful decades.
Biden’s international forte is grift and graft with bribery as his fallback.
Not that Biden is allowed to walk outside his home anymore due to senility.
Harris has zero diplomatic skill and an absolute lack of understanding on all things financial.
At best, Harris will follow cankles method of diplomacy by handing out billions of dollars for nebulous promises. Just as cankles did in Copenhagen for the flimsiest of climate promises..
Neither candidate has a history of holding large countries accountable. Biden has some history holding weaker/smaller countries accountable.
It’s called bullying. And Biden expects big cash amounts from those he bullies. Though, Biden did learn to hand over large amounts of money to people of which he is frightened, Iran, Russia, China…
It’s far better to hope that President Trump gets the voting fraud cleared up by SCOTUS.
So it begins. The left aint happy Joe-
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/trump-should-have-lost-in-a-landslide-the-fact-that-he-didn-t-speaks-volumes/ar-BB1aJgY9
Crack down? You mean like China is doing to Australia as we speak.