BREAKING: French official says US bears blame for European heatwave that killed over 1,300
A French politician just told Americans exactly what they needed to hear after days of mockery aimed at Europe over its lack of air conditioning.
Audrey Pulvar, the deputy mayor of Paris for international relations, responded to the jokes by laying out a much bigger truth. The United States, she said, bears significant responsibility for the climate crisis fueling these deadly heatwaves in the first place.
“As the second largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, you bear a significant amount of responsibility for global warming and the consequences we, in France, are experiencing,” Pulvar wrote. “Your cities, which are 90 percent air conditioned, are not unrelated to this.”
The numbers back her up. The United States produces roughly 13 percent of the world’s CO2 emissions, while the 27 countries of the European Union combined produce just six percent. Last year, US coal consumption jumped 10 percent even as the world tries to pull back from fossil fuels.
The heatwave she was responding to was not a small thing. The World Health Organization linked it to more than 1,300 excess deaths across Europe, with temperatures soaring to 44 degrees Celsius in parts of France. Scientists have said the extreme heat would have been virtually impossible without human caused climate change.
Pulvar did not just push back on a joke. She pointed straight at the source of the problem and refused to let it slide.