For Immediate Release, November 13, 2017
Contact: John Fleming, +1 (310) 405-1532, jfleming@biologicaldiversity.org
Scientist Condemns 'Absurd' Trump Fossil Fuel Panel at UN Climate Conference
BONN, Germany— The Trump administration hosted a panel at the United Nations climate conference today to promote the use of coal, natural gas and nuclear energy as climate mitigation strategies.
“It’s patently absurd to suggest that coal has any role to play in solving the climate crisis,” said John Fleming, a Center for Biological Diversity scientist who attended the panel discussion. “Coal reserves dwarf the remaining carbon budget for staying under 2 degrees Celsius, let alone 1.5 degrees. Further use of coal is a death sentence for the planet.”
Trump’s panelists claimed that because fossil fuels will continue to supply a large share of the world’s energy, U.S. approaches to “cleaner” fossil fuel use should serve as a model for other countries.
“At a time when renewable energy is becoming cheaper and major economies like China and India are shifting more of their focus toward renewables, the panel’s rhetoric was baseless and destructive,” said Fleming.
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