The climate is changing, but President Donald Trump’s views on it are not. As of 2017, Donald Trump has tweeted about climate change 115 times. America needs a president who values the environment, and Donald Trump clearly does not. He’s even gone as far as saying global warming is a hoax invented by the Chinese.
So how does that relate to his role in climate change as president? Well, there are 85 environmental rules working to be repealed (or already have been) by Trump and his administration.
One of the most important things that he has done as President is withdraw from the Paris Climate Accords. Although this will save U.S. tax dollars, the U.S. is losing money that could be made by expanding the production of renewable energy sources. More importantly, exiting the Paris Climate Accords is ruining U.S. chances of reaching the environmental goals of lowering emissions set under President Obama.
Those changes occurring under President Trump are coming at a bad time, with reports stating there is about a decade to cut harmful greenhouse gas emissions before there are irreversible damages.
But, under Trump, that seems unlikely. Trump has been an advocate for coal mines since his election in 2016. Coal mining is not only extremely dangerous to the health of the workers, but it is accountable for well over 1 billion metric tons of CO2 emissions every year in the U.S. alone.
Not only does he support coal mines that produce CO2 emissions which contributes to the deterioration of the ozone layer, but he also has shown constant disapproval for environmental agencies across the country. One of the agencies that is getting hit the hardest is the Environmental Protection Agency. President Trump is calling for a 31% reduction of funding for the EPA by 2020.
Reducing the funds of the EPA will not directly reduce funds. With the EPA receiving less support, there will have to be layoffs, which will lead to less effectiveness from the EPA. As a result, the environment will continue to be drastically ignored as Trump boasts about the economy.
Those decisions that he is making about the environment are not only going to impact us while he’s in office; it will continue to for years to come. The issue of climate change shouldn’t be a partisan issue. It’s a problem that will impact everybody, regardless of how much they believe in climate change.
We can’t wait until it’s too late to tackle climate change; this is everybody’s problem. People can make changes in their everyday lives and on a global scale by voting someone into office who values the environment and who will help conserve the planet that we love.
Joey Perkins is a freshman studying strategic communications at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Joey? Tweet him @JoeyPerkins_.
