‘There’s No Mandate to Slam Climate Progress Into Reverse,’ Says NRDC
By Paige Bennett
As one of his first orders of business upon taking office, President Donald Trump has once again withdrawn the U.S. from the Paris Agreement.
During his former presidency. Trump had announced the withdrawal of the U.S. from the agreement in June 2017, as he argued that the accord put an unfair economic burden on American businesses and taxpayers. The process to withdraw began in 2019.
However, in 2021, former President Joe Biden recommitted the country to the Paris Agreement, although the announcements from that time have been removed from federal government websites, including WhiteHouse.gov and Department of State website. (During his former presidency, the Trump administration removed climate change-related content from official websites.)
Now, on January 20, Trump spent the first day in office signing multiple executive orders, including several that targeted climate and sustainability actions. As NPR reported, Trump signed the withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris Agreement while in front of supporters at Capital One Arena.
“I’m immediately withdrawing from the unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord rip-off,” Trump said while signing the executive order, as reported by Earth.org. “The United States will not sabotage our own industries while China pollutes with impunity.”
Although the move was expected, environmental organizations and activists have still criticized the executive order, as the world just experienced its hottest year on record. Last year also brought record-breaking ocean temperatures and a record-fast pace of rising carbon dioxide emissions.
But many organizations and countries are ready to move forward with climate action, even without U.S. involvement.
“This moment should serve as a wake-up call to reform the system, ensuring that those most affected — communities and individuals on the front lines – are at the center of our collective governance,” said Laurence Tubiana, CEO at European Climate Foundation who was involved in structuring the Paris Agreement, as reported by NPR.
Although meeting the Paris Agreement target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times is critical to avoiding catastrophic damages from climate change, the world is not currently on track to meet this target.
Climate scientists have already described the goal as “deader than a doornail.” A 2023 study determined that the world is just 10 to 15 years from consistently exceeding the 1.5-degree target, and the world already surpassed a global average of 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer than pre-industrial times from February 2023 to January 2024 and again for the 2024 calendar year.
Along with removing the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, other executive orders signed yesterday include a reverse on the 50% EV mandate by Biden, a lift of an LNG export permit approval pause and a freeze on wind energy project leases and permits.
“Clean energy is creating jobs, cutting consumer costs, and improving health in red states and blue,” Manish Bapna, president and CEO of Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), said in a statement on the latest executive orders. “It’s strengthening the supply chain for the building blocks of a modern economy, making U.S. companies more competitive and the country more energy secure. Targeting those gains on Day 1 is part of a raft of fossil fuel handouts meant to stall the shift to clean energy.”
Bapna added, “The election didn’t roll back the laws of atmospheric chemistry. It didn’t negate the manifest benefits the country is experiencing from finally confronting the climate crisis. It didn’t signal that it’s okay to condemn our children to a runaway train of climate disasters. There’s no mandate to slam climate progress into reverse.”
Based in Los Angeles, Paige is a writer who is passionate about sustainability. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Ohio University and holds a certificate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She also specialized in sustainable agriculture while pursuing her undergraduate degree.
