As World Decarbonizes, USA Becoming A Free Rider
US has made itself structurally hardest country to decarbonize and is moving very slowly on challenge
The free rider problem in climate action arises when some countries or actors benefit from the efforts of others to mitigate climate change without contributing their fair share. Since the atmosphere is a global common good, actions taken by one country to reduce greenhouse gas emissions benefit the entire world, including countries that do not take similar steps. Europe’s consistent reductions in emissions since 1990 and China’s starting rapid structural decline make the USA’s actions look anemic on the surface, and worse under the covers.
Let’s start with the obvious: the Inflation Reduction Act from the Biden Administration is much better than what came before it in any administration. However, as per my recent climate report card series on the country, the past four years still only merited a B- on climate.
And while the IRA and related efforts are merely okay, the United States has turned into the world’s largest extractor, processor, refiner and exporter of fossil fuels, with a rather absurd amount of growth during Biden’s Presidency. (There is a glimmer of a silver lining around that very black cloud however.)
