The Inflation Reduction Act is both the most important federal climate legislation ever and sadly inadequate to protect the U.S. and the world from the effects of climate change. Where it falls short, states could intervene with tougher regulations — but many won’t. That leaves corporations, which can pressure their suppliers to take the actions necessary to prevent global warming’s most devastating effects.
Several expert assessments agree that the IRA will reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by up to a billion tons per year by 2030.
If fully realized, the IRA’s policies get us one-third of the way to a safe and stable climate, one that avoids global warming beyond two degrees Celsius above the preindustrial average. Where will the other two-thirds of emissions reductions come from?
