Special: Joe Biden and the Climate
WOW. There is so much to be feeling this week. After a VERY long election result process, America has voted on who they want to lead them next.
It’s no secret that Donald Trump has been no friend to the planet.
He has continuously questioned the science of global warming which has led to extreme policy decisions like withdrawing the U.S. from a global climate agreement and unraveling dozens of environmental regulations.
So, how will Joe be better?
Ways Joe Will Be Better
1) He believes in it.
I can’t believe it’s 2020 and I had to write that. 🤦♀️
But yes, compared to Trump, Biden believes in the science and sees the need to change. He says climate change is the greatest challenge facing the USA and the world which is the right mindset we need to make change happen.
2) Paris Climate Agreement
After Trump gave a year’s notice in 2019, the USA officially left the global agreement on Nov 4, 2020. On Nov 4, Biden tweeted:
3) Clean Energy
Trump sped up major fossil fuel infrastructure projects, and reversed Obama’s Clean Power Plan - setting the USA back on emission-reduction goals.
Biden’s platform includes a heavy investment in clean energy and a goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.
4) Environmental Protections
Trump did some major damage to the federal environmental groups.
Right now, the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency], is headed by Andrew Wheeler, a former coal-industry lobbyist.
Because of that, nearly 70 environmental regulations have been rolled back. Here are a few examples of what Trump rolled back:
Removed national requirements to reduce carbon emissions
Altered the Endangered Species Act, making it harder to protect wildlife
Stripped away environmental protections for millions of miles of waterways and wetlands
Opened up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling
Eased regulations of methane leaks on public land
All in all
Biden is a politician. He will align himself to the Democratic platform and voter base. So, do I have complete faith he’ll follow through on everything?
A little.
But do I believe we’re in a MUCH better place than if Trump got re-elected?
Hell 👏 f*cking 👏 yes.
How do you feel about the climate now that Biden is president-elect? Positive? Hopeful? Still concerned? Let me know! I’d love to hear from you!
