Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull told Parliament on Thursday that Australia had become the hundred-and-fortieth country to ratify the agreement which was decided upon at the UN climate meeting in Paris last December. In April, the accord was signed by 196 nations in New York.

Under the terms of the agreement, the countries have committed to working towards limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) and setting five-yearly targets for reducing emissions.

"Ratification of the agreement confirms Australia's ambitious and responsible target to reduce emissions by 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels by 2030," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said in a joint statement with the two ministers.

With its relatively small population of 24 million and continued heavy use of coal-based energy, Australia is considered one of the world's worst per capita greenhouse gas polluters.

US president-elect Donald Trump has denied climate change

UN: Trump cannot undo deal

The news on Thursday came amid fears that US president-elect Donald Trump could soon follow through on his pledge to "cancel" the landmark pact.

The US is among the 140 countries to have already ratified the agreement which account for 70 percent of the world's emissions and three-quarters of global GDP.

Prior to his election on Wednesday, Trump called global warming a "hoax," raising concerns among environmentalists and climate scientists that the US would once again pull out of an international climate deal.

The US currently produces 13 percent of global emissions, making it the world's second-largest greenhouse gas polluter after China.

France's environment minister and outgoing head of the UN climate forum Segolene Royal said on Wednesday, however, that Trump "cannot prevent the implementation" of the pact.

"He cannot - contrary to his assertions - undo the Paris Agreement," she told French radio station RTL.

UN climate change talks are currently underway in Morocco where the Paris agreement is due to be discussed next week.

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Gray zone "Trump must choose whether he will be a President remembered for putting America and the world on a path to climate disaster, or for listening to the American public and keeping us on a path to climate progress. Trump better choose wisely, otherwise - we can guarantee him the hardest fight of his life every step of the way.” - Michael Brune, Executive Director, The Sierra Club

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Dry reality "Today is a bad day for international climate policy. That a climate change denier can be elected as the most powerful man in the world will make efforts to reduce emissions and secure adequate funding for adaptation measures all the more difficult... The international community needs reliable partners for ambitious climate policies." - Sabine Minninger, climate advisor for Brot für die Welt

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Out of control "The Paris Agreement was signed and ratified not by a President, but by the United States itself. As a matter of international law, and as a matter of human survival, the nations of the world can, must, and will hold the United States to its climate commitments." - Jean Su from California-based Center for Biological Diversity

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Green solutions "We know that yesterday's elections are undoubtedly going to affect the tone of the negotiations, but we know the task we have in front of us remains the same: that we must continue to keep our aim and our focus on the long-term that the countries set for themselves in the Paris Agreement." - Mariana Panuncio-Feldman, World Wildlife Fund's (WWF) Senior Director of International Climate Cooperation

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Slow death "For communities in the global south, the U.S. citizens' choice to elect Donald Trump seems like a death sentence. We are suffering the effects of climate change after years of inaction by rich countries... and with an unhinged climate change denier in the White House, the relatively small progress made is under threat." - Wilfred D'Costa, Asian Peoples' Movement on Debt and Development

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Opening the floodgates "President-elect Donald Trump's stance on global warming is well known. Ironically, he contributed to the popularity of our recent 'Turn down the heat'-report series for the World Bank by attacking it on Twitter. Yet apart from this, science cannot expect any positive climate action from him." - Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Washed up? "It's clear that Donald Trump is about to be one of the most powerful people in the world, but even he does not have the power to change the laws of physics... Climate change has become a geopolitical issue of the top order and no country can be perceived as not doing its fair share on climate without serious consequences for its standing in the world." - Alden Meyer, Union of Concerned Scientists

Environmental reactions to Trump victory A burning issue "As a young woman and first-time voter I will not tolerate Trump's denialism of the action needed for climate justice. Our country must undergo a systemic change and just transition away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy within my lifetime. The next four years are critical for getting on the right pathway." - Becky Chung, the youth network SustainUS.

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Time to be clean "The fact of climate change is not changed by what happened last night. At this very historic moment, it is important to remind ourselves that we were in the wilderness before and progress was possible. Leaders across the world will expect the US to honor its commitment and they won't wait in the race to the renewable energy future." - Li Shuo, Greenpeace China

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Shrinking opportunities “Donald Trump is the newly elected President of the United States. As of today, the Paris Agreement is an even stronger signal against denying reality and for global cooperation to solve the pressing problems of the world... You cannot ignore the facts." - Christoph Bals, Policy Director of Germanwatch

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Powerful force “Trump will try and slam the brakes on climate action, which means we need to throw all of our weight on the accelerator... We need the rest of the world to charge ahead and look beyond the White House to partner with civil society, businesses, and local governments who are still committed to climate action... Our work becomes much harder now, but it’s not impossible.” - 350.org

Environmental reactions to Trump victory Growing concern "Africa is already burning. The election of Trump is a disaster for our continent. The United States, if it follows through on its new President's rash words about withdrawing from the international climate regime, will become a pariah state in global efforts for climate action." - Geoffrey Kamese from Friends of the Earth Africa



ksb/kms (AFP, AP)