Mexico unveils national strategy for Paris climate talks

WASHINGTON — Mexico on Friday said it will cap its greenhouse gas emissions by 2026, becoming one of the first countries to formally submit its national climate plan to the United Nations ahead of a climate summit set to take place in Paris in December.

Mexico's Foreign and Environment Ministries presented the national climate submission in Mexico City, unveiling a strategy to begin reducing emissions by 2026. The plan would lead to a 22 percent reduction in greenhouse gases below business-as-usual levels by 2030.

After 2026, Mexico greenhouse gas emissions would become decoupled from economic growth, leading to a 40 percent reduction in emissions intensity per unit of GDP between 2013 and 2030, according to the submission.

Mexico also pledged to slash emissions of "short-lived climate pollutants (SLCP)," such as soot and methane by 25 percent below business as usual by 2030.

Mexico set its targets unconditionally, without requiring financial support from developed countries. But it said it could raise its 2030 greenhouse gas target to 36 percent and its SLCP target to 40 percent if it gained access to climate funds and technology or if there were a global carbon price.

After Mexico unveiled the targets, President Enrique Pena Nieto and U.S. President Barack Obama announced a new joint climate policy task force to "further deepen policy and regulatory coordination in specific areas" including vehicle fuel efficiency, appliance standards and electricity grid modernization.

The White House praised Mexico for being the first major emerging economy to submit its national strategy, known in UN jargon as its intended nationally determined contribution (INDC), to the United Nations. The United States is expected to submit its own plan early next week.

"Mexico is setting an example for the rest of the world by submitting an INDC that is timely, clear, ambitious, and supported by robust, unconditional policy commitments," the White House said in a statement.

Christina McCain of the Environmental Defense Fund said Mexico's unconditional commitment "demonstrates that 21st century economies are recognizing low-carbon growth as the path of the future.”

Originally, the hope had been that many countries would accept a U.N. invitation "for those ready to do so" to submit their national plans by March 31, leaving time to compare and perhaps strengthen them before Paris.

"We now expect many, many more countries to submit their INDCs over the coming days, weeks and months," said Nick Nuttall, spokesman for the U.N. Secretariat.

(By Valerie Volcovici; additional reporting by Alister Doyle; Editing by Alan Crosby and David Gregorio)