Trump Announces Withdrawal from Paris Climate Accord

After speculation surrounding President Donald Trump’s decision on whether or not the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, on Thursday (June 1) Trump made the official announcement of those plans to do so.
In a press conference at the White House on Thursday, Trump said in order to fulfill his “solemn duty to protect America and its citizens,” the US will withdraw from the agreement and instead negotiate to re-enter the Paris accord or “a new transaction on terms that are fair to the United States, its businesses, its workers, its people, its taxpayers.”
“So, we’re getting out,” Trump said. “But, we will start to negotiate and see if we can make a deal that’s fair.”

The Paris Agreement officially came into effect on November 4, 2016–four days before the US presidential election. As part of the agreement, some of the key goals included strengthening the global response to climate change threats by keeping a global temperature rise “well below” two degrees celsius above pre-industrial levels, and “pursue efforts” to limit temperature increases even further to 1.5 degrees celsius.
“The agreement aims to strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change,” the agreement read. “To reach these ambitious goals, appropriate financial flows, a new technology framework and enhanced capacity building framework will be put in place.”
As reported by the Globe and Mail, under Barack Obama’s presidency the US had pledged to reduce emission levels of roughly 1.6 billion tons by 2025.
Trump, who has infamously called climate change a “hoax,” criticized the agreement by saying it was unfair to the US.
“The Paris Climate Accord is simply the latest example of Washington entering into an agreement that disadvantages the United States to the exclusive benefit of other countries,” Trump said. “Leaving American workers, who I love, and tax payers to absorb the cost in terms of lost jobs, lower wages, shuttered factories, and vastly diminished economic production.”
Following Trump’s press conference, Obama allegedly attacked the president’s decision.
“This administration joins a small handful of nations that reject the future,” Obama said. “For the nations that committed themselves to that future, the Paris Agreement opened the floodgates for businesses, scientists, and engineers to unleash high-tech, low-carbon investment and innovation on an unprecedented scale.”
Up in Canada, the David Suzuki Foundation was equally critical of the announcement.
In an email note to clients, Ian Bruce, David Suzuki Foundation science and policy director, said the decision “has left the US administration stranded, spinning its wheels.”
“By withdrawing from the agreement, the president has taken a weak position that will stall economic and environmental progress,” the email read.
According to the note, poll results from Yale University’s Climate Change in the American Mind conducted following the election, 73 percent of Trump voters said they would like to see the US use more renewable energy.
“The president is turning his back on states that voted for him,” Bruce said. “Most Americans want renewable energy because it allows people the freedom to generate and supply their own energy and creates economic opportunities.”
Unsurprisingly, a number of cleantech company stocks did not react well following the press conference. Shares of Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) dropped to $12.81, but rallied back to $12.91 at the close of trading. Meanwhile, shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) were down 0.19 percent for the trading period to $340.37. Shares of Ormat Technologies (NYSE:ORA) slipped to $58.69 following the conference before rising back to $59.66 at the close.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Jocelyn Aspa, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.