Joe Biden tells Cop27 climate summit ‘US will meet emissions target by 2030’

President Joe Biden has told the Cop27 climate summit in Sharm-El-Sheikh that that the US will meet its emissions target by 2030 to do the country’s part in averting the ‘climate hell’ the UN secretary-general warned of earlier this week.Mr Biden is addressing the annual climate conference this afternoon as his administration plans to supercharge efforts to reduce methane emissions.The president said he could announce ‘with confidence’ the country’s commitment to meeting ts target of reducing emissions by 50-52 per cent by 2030.’We’re not ignoring harbingers who are right here. It’s true the climate crisis is hitting hardest those countries and communities that have the fewest resources to respond and to recover,’ he added. ‘And that’s why, last year, I committed to work with our Congress to quadruple US support to climate finance, and provide $11bn annually, including $3bn for adaption.’More follows…Joe Bidenn apologised for his country leaving the Paris agreement In a joint announcement with the EU earlier, Mr Biden set in motion a crackdown on greenhouse gas, known to contribute significantly to global warming and pack a stronger short-term punch than even carbon dioxide.The measures expand on a similar regulation his administration released last year which targeted emissions of methane from existing oil and gas wells across the US, rather than focusing only on new wells as previous Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations have done. The new rule goes a step further to affect all drilling sites, including smaller wells that emit less than 3 tons (2.7 metric tonnes) of methane per year.Scientists said today that global carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels are on track to rise around 1 per cent this year, warning this would make it harder for the world to avoid disastrous levels of climate change.As such, the Biden administration will embark upon ‘a relentless focus to root out emissions wherever we can find them,’ White House national climate adviser Ali Zaidi said.It is hoped the president’s speech in Sharm el-Sheikh will remind countries to stay focused on the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C. Mr Biden’s decade-long plegde of $375bn to fight climate change gives his administration greater sway in pressing other nations to fulfill their pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and shift the global economy toward cleaner energy sources. Earlier on Friday, German special envoy Jennifer Morgan said: ‘It’s a very good sign that president Biden is coming to this COP (summit). I think it reassures countries, people that the United States at the highest level takes this issue incredibly seriously. And we need that.’