Report: How The U.S. Could Meet Its 2030 Climate Goals

In an analysis from Rhodium Group, authors John Larsen, Ben King, Emily Wimberger, Hannah Pitt, Hannah Kolus, Alfredo Rivera, Naveen Dasari, Claire Jahns, Kate Larsen, and Whitney Herndon combine their collective expertise "of the US economy, energy systems, and policy design with state-of-the-art modeling tools to comprehensively answer two questions: Can the US cut net GHG emissions by 50-52% by 2030 and if so, what does a policy pathway to the target look like?"

The report finds that "[u]nder current policy as of May 2021, with no new action, the US is on track to reduce GHG emissions 17-25% below 2005 levels in 2030." This "leaves a gap of 1.7-2.3 billion metric tons of emission reductions required to achieve the US target in 2030." The "analysis demonstrates that meeting the US’s 2030 target is achievable, if Congress, the executive branch, and subnational leaders all take a series of practical and feasible policy actions" that include "passage this year of the infrastructure bill and budget reconciliation package in Congress, coupled with a steady stream of standards and regulations by federal agencies and accelerated action by leading states and companies."

The report warns that "[e]ven then, achieving the ambitious goal puts the nation just halfway to the longer-term goal of net-zero emissions by mid-century, which is the level required for the US to play its role in a robust global response to the threat of climate change." The full report, which details "a series of actions that can be reasonably expected to occur over the next nine years if leaders in all levels of government work in earnest to address climate change," can be accessed here.