Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Paris agreement: Donald Trump faces rebel state governors vowing to continue climate change fight

'The White House’s reckless decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement has devastating repercussions not only for the US, but for our planet', says the New York governor

Narjas Zatat
Friday 02 June 2017 09:10 BST
Comments
Protesters hold up signs during a demonstration in front of the White House in Washington, DC, objecting to US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate accord
Protesters hold up signs during a demonstration in front of the White House in Washington, DC, objecting to US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate accord ((Getty Images))

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Three US states are gearing up to combat climate change together in response to Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement.

Washington, New York and California governors have announced their intention to form a United States Climate Alliance.

In a joint statement, Washington Governor Jay Inslee said: “I am proud to stand with other governors as we make sure that the inaction in DC is met by an equal force of action from the states.

"While the president’s actions are a shameful rebuke to the work needed to protect our planet for our children and grandchildren, states have been and will continue to step up."

New York governor Andrew Cuomo called Mr Trump’s decision “reckless”, insisting that the withdrawal will have “devastating repercussions” not only for the country, but the planet as well.

He said the state is "committed to meeting the standards set forth in the Paris Accord" regardless of the White House' actions.

“We will not ignore the science and reality of climate change.”

The three liberal states represent some 68 million people, accounting for approximately 10 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in the US.

California governor Jerry Brown pointed out the US president’s previous comments about climate change being a “hoax” and said that if he is going to be “AWOL in this profoundly important endeavour, then California and other states will step up”.

The alliance intends to act as a “forum” to strengthen existing climate programmes, promote the sharing of information and best practices, and create new programmes to reduce carbon emissions from “all sectors of the economy”.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in