D.C. joins more than 175 other cities in pledging to uphold Paris agreement goals

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The District of Columbia joined a growing list of U.S. cities vowing to continue or strengthen their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the wake of President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord.

As the nation’s capital, D.C. has a special obligation to create policies and implement programs that protect the environment, Mayor Muriel Bowser said Monday at a signing ceremony near the U.S. Capitol. “Today, I’m signing a mayoral order that affirms the District’s support for the Paris climate accord,” the mayor said.

More than 175 mayors, representing 51 million people, have committed to honor the Paris agreement’s goals since Trump exited from the international agreement, Bowser noted. “We know these mayors are both Democrats and Republicans. They’re from small cities and large cities and everything in between,” she said. “We are confident that we will, no matter what the decisions are at the federal level, continue to form the policies that will help to protect our earth.”

The task of reducing greenhouse gas emissions will not be easy, especially if many of the provisions in Trump’s proposed fiscal year 2018 budget are approved, Bowser said. Trump’s budget, for example, would get rid of Energy Star, a government labeling program for energy-efficient appliances and consumer products.

https://thinkprogress.org/dc-mayor-commits-to-paris-accord-7a3e3ce30d54