【1998 Archives】

998 ArchivesU.S. might be abandoning the Paris Climate Agreement, but that doesn't mean the states have to play along.

Hawaii this week became the first state in the country to adopt legislation that upholds portions of the landmark climate treaty.

Gov. David Ige signed two bills, one of which expands strategies for reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions, and the other which expands "carbon-negative" agricultural practices on the island's farms.

SEE ALSO: California's governor, not Trump, meets with China over climate change

"The Hawaii state legislature understands the importance of taking action, and I applaud its work this session to ensure that we continue to deliver the island Earth that we want to leave to our children," Ige said at a signing ceremony on Tuesday.

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The actions arrive less than a week after President Trump announced his decision to withdraw from the Paris agreement, which was signed in 2015 and entered into force last year. Trump called the voluntary, non-binding treaty a "draconian" document that's "unfair" to Americans. He said he'd try to renegotiate the agreement, which is legally impossible to do.

Since then, more than 1,200 U.S. governors, mayors, businesses, investors, colleges, and academic institutions have joined "We Are Still In," an effort to assure the international community that the U.S. is still working toward the targets of the Paris agreement.

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The treaty commits nations to reducing emissions enough to limit global warming to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius, or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit, above preindustrial levels through 2100. It also sets a more ambitious goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit.

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At Tuesday's event in Honolulu, Ige said Hawaiians "look forward to working with other states to fight global climate change. Together, we can directly contribute to the global agenda of achieving a more resilient and sustainable island Earth."

The first of Hawaii's new climate laws enshrines the state's commitment to combatting climate change by reducing emissions -- through renewable energy, energy efficiency, and other methods -- and improving the state's resiliency to climate-related impacts, including rising sea levels and more severe and frequent storms.

The measure adopts relevant portions of the Paris agreement as state law, "which gives us a legal basis to continue adaptation and mitigation strategies for Hawaii -- despite the federal government's withdrawal from the treaty," State Sen. J. Kalani English said in a statement.

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The second law establishes the Carbon Farming Task Force, aimed at identifying "agricultural and aquacultural practices to improve soil health and promote carbon sequestration." Healthy soils can potentially soak up heat-trapping carbon emissions and keep them out of the atmosphere, where they contribute to global warming.

While Hawaii is so far the only state to pass legislation in support of Paris after Trump's withdrawal announcement, other governors have similarly voiced support for the global agreement.

Ige is one of 13 U.S. governors, including Republicans and Democrats, to join the newly created United States Climate Alliance, which commits states to upholding the Paris agreement's targets.

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