On March 31, the United States submitted to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) its plans for reducing greenhouse gases (GHG). The formal submission, officially called an Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC), was made in advance of the anticipated international climate talks in Paris in December of this year. The commitment follows a March 19 executive order and a bilateral agreement with China to reduce greenhouse gases announced in November 2014.
The INDC tracks these previous actions by the Obama administration and states that the U.S. “intends to achieve an economy-wide target of reducing its GHG emissions by 26% -28% below its 2005 level in 2025 and to make best efforts to reduce its emissions by 28%.”
The INDC submission states that the U.S. can achieve these reductions based on regulations already on the books as well as other regulations under the Clean Air Act and Energy Policy Act that are expected to be finalized before January 2017 when President Obama leaves office.
As of March 31, 34 parties to the UNFCCC have formally submitted their INDCs. The submissions, available online, cover all the countries under the European Union as well as Mexico, Norway, Russia, Switzerland and the U.S.