PCAST Releases Report on Accelerating Effective Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Today, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) released a report aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions through whole-of-country coordinated efforts and expanded assessment and verification systems. This effort would also target methane, a greenhouse gas which is particularly abundant and harmful. Greenhouse gas emissions cause climate change, which threatens food and water security, and negatively impacts human health and wellbeing. Galvanizing efforts to reduce and eliminate emissions sets the nation on a path to be healthier, safer, and more prosperous. Recommendations included in this report complement and expand on the Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s National Strategy to Advance an Integrated U.S. Greenhouse Gas Measurement, Monitoring, and Information System and accelerate the Administration’s goals of achieving a net zero emissions economy by no later than 2050.

PCAST’s recommendations include:

• Establish common data systems for all of our nation’s emissions measurement, monitoring, reporting and verification data. This will enable accurate, granular, validated, and timely greenhouse gas information at multiple geographic and temporal scales.

• Increasing the United States’ capacity to track and accelerate progress toward reaching net zero emissions in 2050 and beyond by strengthening research and infrastructure to innovate measuring, monitoring, reporting and verifying greenhouse gas emissions. 

• Expanding comprehensive and up-to-date monitoring and reporting of methane emissions from all sectors and incorporate verification using atmospheric approaches. 

• Accelerating, expanding, modernizing, and sustaining the measuring, monitoring, reporting and verifying of greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural and forestry sectors, focusing first on methane, in order to assess and enhance the effectiveness and implementation of climate-smart agriculture and forestry practices. 

These efforts propose meaningful changes to support continued actions of the Administration to tackle the climate crisis and create a better environment for all Americans.

To view a full copy of the PCAST report, please click here.

To view PCAST’s Letter to the President and the Executive Summary of the report, please click here.

PCAST is the sole body of advisors from outside the federal government charged with making science, technology, and innovation policy recommendations to the President. Learn more about their work here.