2 June 2017
By Bryan T. Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
Labour spokesperson on Climate Change, Sean Sherlock TD, has expressed his disappointment at the decision by the United States to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord.
Sean Sherlock is a Labour TD in Cork East
The announcement was made by US President, Donald Trump, at the White House last evening.
Deputy Sherlock commented:
‘’I am really dismayed by President Trump’s announcement that the US will no longer honour its Paris Climate Accord commitments.
‘’This historic agreement, which was signed by nearly 200 nations in 2015 including Ireland, marked a major milestone in global efforts to tackle climate change, acknowledging the threat as ‘urgent and potentially irreversible’.
‘’While the US decision will not completely derail the deal, I am concerned that it will weaken the impact, and the move sends a worrying message that one of the major global powerhouses, the United States, has decided to withdraw from the deal in its current form.
‘’The decision could also see around three billion tonnes more carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere every year.
‘’There are reports this evening that individual mayors of American cities may not relinquish their own commitments to reducing the impacts of climate change, and I hope they will follow through.
‘’Ireland now must up the ante with its own commitment to tackling the impact of climate change and resolve to increase efforts in this regard.’’
