U.S. allies in the G7 said Monday that action to contain devastating climate change was irreversible and could even be accelerated, despite Donald Trump's decision to pull the United States out of the Paris accord.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declined to endorse an global statement backing the Paris Agreement on climate change in order to "appease" U.S. President Donald Trump, reports German magazine Der Spiegel.
Scott Pruitt, head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, attended the first few hours of the two-day summit before returning to Washington for a Cabinet meeting, U.S. officials said.
Greenpeace's Jennifer Morgan, said: "Paris is non-negotiable and the leadership shown by the G6 countries, along with the cities, states and businesses in the U.S. in moving the agreement forward swiftly is fundamental".
It also specifically noted President Donald Trump's decision to unilaterally pull out of the landmark Paris agreement on climate change. "We support an interactive evidence-based dialogue drawing on the best available science, including reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the sharing of experience and best practice as well as expertise from United Nations institutions and intergovernmental organizations", the communique states.
"We need to go forward with implementing the accord and helping countries translate their national programme into their development policies so we can get to 2018 and have a first assessment of where we stand", she said.
"One thing is clear: For us the Paris accord remains the only possible instrument to combat climate change because it's a multilateral agreement", Gian Luca Galletti, Italy's environment minister and the meeting's host, told reporters.
The magazine portrayed Trudeau's position as a key factor that would make it hard for other countries to pressure the U.S.to do more on climate change.
Stroll delighted to prove his points
On lap 46, Stroll went down the back straight and comfortably reached the chicane before Vandoorne, jumping into 12th as a result. And he's 18 years old. "OK, it sounds like a lot but it is a little bit in every corner and I have never been here.
Donald Trump is as unlikely to attack the shale industry as he is to revive coal, which means the most important climate tool in America's toolbox is going to be there for the foreseeable future.
"Our hope is that together with big emerging economies we can turn our commitments into action - boldly enough and quickly enough - to protect the most vulnerable among us", said Thoriq Ibrahim, the Maldives environment minister and chair of the Alliance of Small Island States.
The G-7 environment ministers were expected to issue a concluding declaration Monday.
"A lot of people are very upset about Trump's decision and it has started a new debate", Mr Giacomo Cossu, an organiser of the demonstration, said.
"We must take these promises seriously", said Helen Clarkson, president of the Climate Group.
The Paris agreement was signed by 195 nations in December 2015 to outline what the world needs to do to limit the increase in temperature of the planet to less than two degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times.
Trump said Washington would not be bound by the targets on reducing emissions of greenhouse gases set down in Paris, and will cut funding for developing countries affected by climate change.
Scenarios include coastal inundation through sea level rise, extreme storms, droughts and heat waves, which are likely to trigger new conflicts and migration.
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