Landmark Paris climate agreement will go into effect later this year

Enough nations have committed to the Paris climate accord that it will go into effect this year, The New York Times reports. That means that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won’t be able to pull out if elected.

The Paris accords, approved by the United Nations last year, commit almost every country to lowering their greenhouse gas emissions. It’s not a miracle plan. Scientists have said that, if fully implemented, the plan would still only reduce emissions by half as much as necessary to prevent a global temperature increase of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. (It’s considered crucial to avoid the 3.6 degree temperature increase in order to protect the planet.) Still, the accord represented a major milestone because it required...