The agreement adopted in the French capital, signed in April this year by 175 governments will enter into force 30 days after the date on which 55 States, totaling at least 55 percent of total emissions of pollutants, have ratified it. Ban thanked the global support for the pact that seeks to keep the temperature increase below two degrees Celsius, 1.5 degrees if possible, in order to avoid irreversible consequences for humanity.
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Thirty one countries submitted their ratification instruments for the Paris climate treaty to the United Nations on Wednesday, bringing the total count of countries that have endorsed the treaty to 60, accounting for almost 48 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
In the minds of world leaders racing to achieve that milestone is a tightening US presidential race that could lead to the election of Republican nominee Donald Trump, who does not accept the science of climate change and has said he would “cancel” the Paris Agreement.
The Paris Agreement sets a goal of limiting global warming to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius, or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, above preindustrial levels by 2100. He has personally pushed to win the necessary commitments from 55 countries.
The speed with which the agreement has neared ratification has surprised diplomats.
“With 31 more countries joining, it is abundantly clear that support for the Paris Agreement is unwavering. On Wednesday will take us one step closer to bringing the Paris Agreement into force this year”, the United Nations chief stressed.
The United Nations is confident that the agreement will come into force by the end of the year. “This will be a major achievement for multilateralism”, he said.
This is much faster than most people had anticipated, said Michael Gerrard, a professor at Columbia Law School who focuses on environmental law.
Signed by 375 members of the National Academy of Sciences, the letter explicitly refers to “the Republican nominee for President” and notes that “such a decision would make it far more hard to develop effective global strategies for mitigating and adapting to climate change”.
Sandalow added that while the agreement will not officially enter into force this week during the United Nations summit in NY, the fact that more than the required 55 countries have now signed on is a significant milestone.
“The Paris Agreement gives a framework to act, but there must be a sense of urgency about bringing the agreement into force”, US President Barack Obama said on Tuesday in his last address as head of state to the General Assembly. Most global treaties take several years to enter into force. “It was important that we went first and were public so the conversation with the other countries could become more real and more concrete”.
“The president’s basic strategy on this has been to use every engagement he’s had … to encourage countries to move more quickly”, the officials said, adding that the result shows there is reason to hope the world can solve its climate challenges.
“Human-caused climate change is not a belief, a hoax, or a conspiracy”.
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In the letter, hundreds of scientists, including Cambridge University professor Stephen Hawking, University of Maryland professor Rita Colwell and Harvard professor emeritus E.O. Wilson denounced Trump and other Republicans who deny the science of climate change.
