Super Pollutants Letter to Biden Administration Jan 28 2021

The document argues for a dual strategy of cutting both carbon dioxide and super pollutants—methane, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), black carbon, and tropospheric ozone—to reduce warming in the next two to three decades. It highlights that reducing black carbon and tropospheric ozone can lower warming in days to months, while HFC and methane reductions work over 15 years. The authors call for specific U.S. actions, including cutting oil and gas methane emissions to 65% below 2012 levels by 2025, ratifying the Kigali Amendment, and tightening National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone smog.

• The authors advocate for a dual climate strategy where carbon dioxide mitigation addresses long-term warming while the reduction of 'super pollutants'—methane, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), black carbon, and tropospheric ozone—provides immediate relief to slow self-reinforcing feedback loops and prevent exceeding the 1.5C threshold, particularly in the Arctic.
• Different super pollutants have varying timescales for their impact on warming: black carbon soot and tropospheric ozone reductions affect warming within days to months, whereas HFC and methane reductions operate over a period of fifteen years.
• Global reduction targets cited from the Climate and Clean Air Coalition suggest that by 2030, methane emissions could be reduced by at least 40% and black carbon by up to 70% (relative to 2010), with HFCs potentially reduced by 99.5% by 2050 compared to 2010.
• The document identifies specific U.S. federal agencies that can act to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry to 65% below 2012 levels by 2025: the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Bureau of Land Management, and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
• The authors recommend several policy actions for the U.S. government, including ratifying the Kigali Amendment via the State Department, upgrading appliance efficiency standards via the Energy Department, and tightening National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone smog via the EPA.

APA

Clean Air Task Force (2021). Super Pollutants Letter to Biden Administration Jan 28 2021. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/21092549/Super-Pollutants-Letter-to-Biden-Administration-Jan-28-2021.pdf

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. Super Pollutants Letter to Biden Administration Jan 28 2021. 2021. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/21092549/Super-Pollutants-Letter-to-Biden-Administration-Jan-28-2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=Super Pollutants Letter to Biden Administration Jan 28 2021 |date=28 January 2021 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/21092549/Super-Pollutants-Letter-to-Biden-Administration-Jan-28-2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{cleanairtaskforce2021super, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{Super Pollutants Letter to Biden Administration Jan 28 2021}}, publisher = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2021}, month = jan, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/21092549/Super-Pollutants-Letter-to-Biden-Administration-Jan-28-2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }