Earth Day 2024 transcript: Experts discuss climate change action in the Americas

ABC News is exploring solutions to issues related to climate change and the environment through the series “The Power of Us: People, Climate and Our Future.”

Earth Day provides citizens, experts and legislators with an annual opportunity to not only celebrate the planet but also examine our impact on our changing environment and demand the advancement of a sustainable future.

Dr. Virginia Burkett, chief scientist for climate and land use change at the U.S. Geological Survey, told ABC News ahead of Earth Day that awareness of the growing climate crisis is critical in order to collectively take a step forward.

“The global Earth observation community has described a triple planetary crisis of interconnected stressors: climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution,” said Burkett, who listed land degradation and deforestation as highly concerning. Watchlist.

“Taken together, the interconnected impacts of human activities pose significant challenges to human security and sustainability,” Burkett warned.

unnatural disaster

Concentrations of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide are more abundant in Earth’s atmosphere than at any time in the past 800,000 years, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which notes that burning fossil fuels has a greater impact on the climate than any other human The activities are great.

Climate experts warn that larger, more severe weather events are becoming a reality in the United States due to the effects of climate change, threatening our future.

“Climate impacts are affecting people’s lives right now,” Costa Samaras, director of Carnegie Mellon University’s Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, told ABC News.

“Climate change is making conditions like extreme heat and extreme storms worse, which can be dangerous for people, especially in vulnerable communities,” Samaras said.

According to the Sixth Assessment Report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2021, increased man-made greenhouse gas emissions have led to the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

Including destructive wildfires and barrages of atmospheric rivers, leading to extreme heat and deadly deep freezes.

“As we experience these larger fires, wildfire smoke, atmospheric rivers, changes in precipitation patterns, etc., we all need to think about how to be better prepared and help our families become more resilient,” said director Brian Henley. Dr. Ning, a professor at Gonzaga University’s Institute for Climate, Water and the Environment, told ABC News.

“The longer we wait to take significant action, the bigger and more complex these problems will become,” Henning warned.

Experts say reducing reliance on fossil fuels that release greenhouse gases, promoting net-zero carbon emissions transport and mitigating development and pollution of natural ecosystems are crucial to combating the effects of climate change.

“The primary ways we currently consume, extract, mine, produce and pollute will exacerbate the climate crisis,” Professor Erlinde Cornelis, chair of the San Diego State Senate Sustainability Committee, told ABC News.

“The United States has all the knowledge on climate science and has some of the best scientists in the world to inform policy,” Cornelis said. “We know where we need to go, so there’s no reason not to act.”

ABC News spoke with experts Burkett, Samaras, Henning, Cornelis and Alabani University Professor of Atmospheric Affairs Day as they consider the steps needed to reduce the country’s role in climate change Dr. Patriot. and environmental science.

Decarbonize America

As the impacts of climate change knock on America’s doors across the country, Henning believes U.S. lawmakers can no longer rely on crisis responses and instead need to address the root causes of the climate crisis.

“We need to decarbonize our heating and transport systems to finally bend the curve and reduce fossil fuel emissions,” Henning said.

According to the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, industrial process heat refers to the use of thermal energy to produce, process, or change manufactured goods and is the most significant source of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the industrial sector.

The agency reports that process heat accounts for approximately 50% of all on-site energy consumption and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions.

To understand the scope of the problem, process heating systems are emissions-intensive because 95% of industrial heat in U.S. manufacturing is provided by the combustion of fossil fuels, according to the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Building the nation’s industrial sector away from fossil fuel burning could include using zero-carbon fuels such as hydrogen or ammonia, as well as low-carbon fuels such as biofuels made from plant waste or algae, the agency said.

“I believe that the complex global problems we face today are the ultimate opportunity for the business community to demonstrate its ingenuity in solving problems,” Cornelis said. “America will benefit from leading the path toward circularity, inclusion, and regeneration.” and a fossil fuel-free economy.

Subsidies for electric vehicles

The transportation sector, including all modes of land, air and sea travel, accounts for nearly one-third of total domestic greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Leaders from the U.S. Departments of Energy, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and the Environmental Protection Agency signed the National Transportation Decarbonization Blueprint in 2022, which aims to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector by 2050.

While the rise in popularity and production of electric vehicles offers glimpses of a future in net-zero carbon emissions transportation, experts say the U.S. is not doing enough to meet our climate goals.

“We need to move from fossil fuel vehicles to electric vehicles and other low-emission vehicles,” Dr. Dai told ABC News. “Otherwise, we will not be able to achieve our goals of significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions over the next 10 to 20 years.”

Day believes the U.S. government must do more to encourage electric vehicles, including competitive pricing, electric vehicle purchase subsidies and expanded charging facilities.

“If there is demand, there will be a commercial market,” Dai said. “But initially, we need government support for investment in electric mobility.”

According to the International Energy Agency, by 2022, 10% of passenger cars sold globally will be electric.

The five countries with the highest sales of electric vehicles are Norway (80% of car sales), Iceland (41%), Sweden (32%), the Netherlands (24%) and China (22%). Only 6% of car sales are electric vehicles.

“U.S. greenhouse gas emissions fell 12% between 2005 and 2019, primarily due to reductions in electricity generation emissions,” Burkett said. “To reach net-zero emissions by 2050, U.S. emissions will need to decrease annually 6% or more.”

According to the World Resources Institute, global electric vehicle sales must grow by 75% to 95% by 2030 in order to be consistent with international climate goals.

Depoliticizing climate change

“We can’t get to net zero if the United States doesn’t get to net zero,” Samaras, who previously served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), told ABC News. “Bye,” he added. The Den-Harris administration has taken the boldest climate action in history.

Experts say the Biden-Harris administration has invested heavily in climate action during its term through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2021.

“The U.S. has finally taken really significant action for the first time ever by passing the Inflation Reduction Act,” Henning said, “and even though its name doesn’t necessarily tell you that it’s an important piece of climate legislation, it is. “

The legislation provides funding, programs and incentives to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy, the EPA said, noting that the bill provides “new ways to obtain clean energy tax credits with a focus on reaching disadvantaged populations with environmental justice issues.” and community.

Henning explained how exciting the legislative focus on environmental justice is, especially at the federal level.

“The government is trying to get funding to the communities that need it most,” Henning said. “So they’re not just looking at ways to put solar panels on the homes of wealthy families, but really looking at how we can provide funding for historically disadvantaged families.” Providing resources to communities and making them more resilient and less polluted so that we can write about some of these historical inequalities as well.

Earlier this month, the Biden-Harris administration announced $20 billion in funding to expand access to clean energy and climate solutions and reduce energy costs for communities across the country.

“These are major efforts that definitely have a catalytic effect,” Cornelis said. “The problem, however, is the backlash.”

Funding for renewable energy must also be commensurate with reductions in spending on fossil fuels, Cornelis said, noting, “We’re essentially re-offsetting our efforts.”

The oil and gas industry spent approximately $124.4 million lobbying the federal government in 2022, according to an OpenSecrets report citing lobbying disclosures.

“Wealthy corporations know that climate action poses an existential threat to their industries, so they have incentives to lobby hard and dissuade politicians from enacting meaningful or draconian regulations to advance climate action,” Cornelis claimed.

“It’s like riding a bicycle uphill as fast as we can while applying the brakes,” she said.