The U.S. and Brazil pledged Tuesday to work toward new commitments to reduce the impact of climate change ahead of President Barack Obama‘s goal of reaching a global accord this December.
The announcement marks a modest step forward in Mr. Obama’s effort to elicit agreements from world leaders in advance of a meeting in Paris where he hopes to finalize the international agreement. Mr. Obama met with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff at the White House on Tuesday.
Brazil hasn’t yet submitted its own climate-change plan, and Tuesday’s announcement falls short of setting a formal target for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. But the White House touted Brazil’s pledge to announce a target later this year as a victory.
Tuesday’s announcement “reflects the strong commitment of the two presidents to reaching an ambitious climate-change agreement,” said Brian Deese, a senior adviser to Mr. Obama who focuses on climate change.
oth countries pledged to increase the share of renewable energy—other than hydropower—in their electricity generation mixes to 20% by 2030. Brazil also committed to eliminating illegal deforestation and restoring and reforesting 12 million hectares by 2030.
The U.S. already has submitted a plan to cut greenhouse gases by 26% to 28% by 2025 based on 2005 levels.
Brazil has signaled support for the global effort to address climate change, but Brazilian officials have suggested that developed countries should shoulder more of the responsibility and should help poorer nations reduce emissions.
