Scientists aghast as Trump rejects Paris deal

President Donald Trump’s announcement that the United States will withdraw from the 2015 Paris accord on tackling climate change has dismayed the country’s environment researchers.

Trump says the deal is unfair and a burden on the national economy, but world leaders and experts say Trump misunderstands both climate science and the agreement.

Jane Lubchenco, former head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), told Scientific American: “President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris agreement shows a blatant disregard for the wishes of most Americans and business leaders, an irresponsible and callous dismissal of the health, safety, and economic wellbeing of Americans, a moral emptiness in ignoring impacts to the poorest people in the US and around the world, and gross ignorance about overwhelming scientific evidence.”