COP29 Cop-out ahead? Fossil Fuels Still Drive Nearly 85% Of U.S. Energy Production

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Fossil fuels, including oil, coal and natural gas, still drive primary energy production in the U.S., a fact that means it’s no surprise that we’re the second largest polluter among the world’s nations. According to 2023 figures, 84% of the United States’ energy production comes from those three sources, with about 60% of electricity generated from the same trio.

All this means that, no matter what is said at November’s COP29 climate summit, America will not be a meaningful part of greenhouse gas reduction.

A stated goal of COP29 is that, “The conference will also be a key moment for countries to present their updated national climate action plans under the Paris Agreement, which are due by early 2025.”

That looks like a hard job for the American delegates, who talk a good game but usually fail to deliver. And then you add in the impending arrival of the new Trump administration, and the conventional wisdom is that the U.S. could actually retreat from a forward-looking action plan altogether, including once again withdrawing from the Paris Agreement.

Beyond emissions reductions from China, the U.S. and India — the three worst polluters — the most important goal is to aid poorer countries in their efforts to reduce emissions as well as protect from the impacts of global warming. “A key focus of COP29 will be on finance,” the organizers announced, “as trillions of dollars are required for countries to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect lives and livelihoods from the worsening impacts of climate change.”

But it’s not that simple. Aid to poorer nations presumes one of two things: government-to-government loans or grants, or cash through independent organizations led by the World Bank. However, COP29 recently stated that, “Developing countries currently account for just $1.6 billion of the estimated $33 billion in outstanding green loans.”

If the U.S. is not making these grants or loans to poorer nations and will not cut reduce the reliance on fossil fuels, reducing or steadying global warming becomes well-nigh impossible. And a Trump administration is almost bound to make it worse.