Canada deeply disappointed with U.S. decision

Trudeau calls president to express disappointment, says he willing to work to address climate change

OTTAWA — President Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climatechange agreement is disappointing, but the world is marching inexorably toward a greener future with or without the U.S., says Canada’s environment minister.

Catherine McKenna was responding to news that the U.S. is pulling out of the landmark 190-country agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, although the president says the U.S. is willing to try to negotiate its re-entry, under better terms.

She called Trump’s Rose Garden anrising nouncement “deeply disappointing,” but suggested the president is costing the U.S. a golden opportunity to profit from the inevitable growth of clean-tech initiatives around the globe.

“The clean-growth economy is where the world is going and Canada is going to be part of it,” McKenna said on Parliament Hill following Thursday’s White House news conference.

“Canada wants to create good jobs, and wants to grow our economy and create opportunities for business. We want to be there, we want to be providing solutions for the world. We know where we’re going.”

Trump framed his decision as reasserting American sovereignty, saying, “I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris.”

He said the U.S. would “cease all implementation” of the accord, under which his predecessor Barack Obama had voluntarily agreed to reduce emissions by about 1.45 billion tonnes by 2025.

Trump said that he would begin negotiations to re-enter the agreement or establish “an entirely new transaction” to get a better deal for the U.S. But re-entry was hardly a priority, he suggested: “If we can, great. If we can’t, that’s fine.”

Scientists say Earth is likely to reach more dangerous levels of warming sooner as a result of the president’s decision, because America contributes so much to temperatures. Calculations suggest withdrawal could result in emissions of up to 2.7 billion tonnes of additional carbon dioxide in the air a year — enough to melt ice sheets faster, raise seas higher and trigger more extreme weather.

Justin Trudeau chatted briefly Thursday by phone with Trump, and “expressed his disappointment with the president’s decision,” the Prime Minister’s Office said. Trudeau “also conveyed Canada’s continued commitment to working internationally to address climate change,” it said.

“It’s unfortunate that the U.S. administration says they’re pulling out of the Paris agreement, but you can’t stop progress.” said McKenna.