What a Trump Administration Could Mean for Climate Change

This article is intended for informational purposes only. We do not endorse nor condemn any political figures in the United States.

As Election Day shrinks further in the rearview mirror, many Americans are scrambling to piece together what a second Trump Presidency will look like. 

Among Mr. Trump’s claims preceding the election were his plans for environmental policy. We have compiled a list of his claims to summarize:

1. Mr. Trump will replace the EPA’s staff with his own, seeking to undermine any progress the administration has made, most recently in the protection of clean drinking water (The Guardian). Russel Vought, Mr. Trump’s director of the Office of Management and Budget, said recently, “We want to put them in trauma,” when referring to shutting down the EPA’s funding (The Guardian).

2. Lee Zeldin was selected to lead the EPA (NBC). Zeldin has voted against several measures the EPA has led, including replacing lead service Iines across the country (CNN). “Our lives, our livelihoods, and our collective future cannot afford Lee Zeldin,” says Ben Jealous, Executive Director of the Sierra Club (NBC).

3. Mr. Trump still dismisses Climate Change as a “hoax” (NYT). In the wake of Hurricane Helene, he referred to global warming as “one of the greatest scams”

4. Mr. Trump has vowed to undo parts of the Inflation Reduction Act (NYT).

5. Mr. Trump says he will pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord. (NYT)

6. Mr. Trump will “expedite federal drilling permits, speed up approvals for fracked gas pipelines, and open up ‘vast stores’ of oil and gas for extraction on public lands” (Sierra Club). “Drill, baby, drill,” says Mr. Trump, when referring to oil (E&E News).

7. Mr. Trump has pledged to enforce a 60% tariff on China (CNN). Who produces the most solar panels? China (Sunsave).

The biggest impact of Trump’s environmental policies? Wasted time (National Geographic).

Republican or Democrat, Liberal or Conservative, we all have a responsibility to preserve the world around us. In the wake of an administration so determined to reverse any environmental progress, we cannot give up hope. 

A Trump Administration will not be the worst thing that will happen for environmental progress, because there will be a reaction to his policies, stronger than any hindrances he’s made. But a reaction cannot happen without action. We have to act—now.

Keep recycling, keep composting, keep learning. Keep sharing this newsletter with everyone you know. When we have an informed citizenry, environmental policies under Mr. Trump cannot win.

~ Seamus Haney, Executive Director

Photo Credit ~ Doug Mills (NYT)