[ad_1]
In a 500-page environmental impact study released last month by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Washington Post found that the government had made the following prediction: By 2100, if current standards remain unchanged, the planet will warm up by 7 degrees Fahrenheit, or 4 degrees Celsius. Little explanation is needed to know why this would be catastrophic. Scientists have already urged leaders to try to limit global warming below 2 degrees Celsius, ideally 1.5 degrees, as even this slight rise could worsen the types of climate change, from hurricanes to already devastating heat waves. Now, imagine these effects doubled. The coral reefs would dissolve, large parts of the planet would become uninhabitable, the coastal cities would disappear.
While NHTSA officials define this future unequivocally, the Trump administration's response is to raise their hands and say, we're screwed anyway, so why stop now?
The Environmental Impact Assessment was designed to justify the Trump Administration's cancellation of the Obama era energy efficiency standards for all vehicles built after 2020. Although the Administration recognizes that the return to power will increase the carbon supply proposing that all climate action be essentially futile: the report predicts that, even if energy efficiency standards are maintained, global temperatures will increase further by 3.5 degrees Celsius before end of the century.
Michael MacCracken, who was a senior researcher at the US Global Change Research Program from 1993 to 2002, told Washington Post"The amazing thing is that they say that human activities will lead to this increase in carbon dioxide that is disastrous for the environment and society. And then they say they're not going to do anything about it. "
Managing vehicle emissions is just one of many ways the Trump administration is failing to tackle climate change: Donald Trump is also committed to reducing emissions standards for power plants It also removed the United States from the Paris Agreement, a global pact between world leaders to at least do their best to keep global warming below that 2-degree threshold. And it is true that efforts to mitigate climate change, that it is to accelerate progress on electric vehicles or significantly increase the consumption of electricity. 39, solar and wind energy, may not be enough to achieve this goal. nothing.
But ultimately, this latest revelation from the Trump administration is not a shock. Whether in the context of its trade relations or throughout its mandate, the President has demonstrated a coherent strategy of prioritizing immediate profit over long-term sustainability. By allowing the unrestricted burning of fossil fuels and easing regulations on car manufacturers, these companies will continue to benefit from them and, in fact, the players in these industries are among the few to accept Trump's approach. With the president's policy, confirmed by his own administration, which has led this century to hell, local leaders must redouble their efforts to advance climate action enough to counter the decline at the federal level.
[ad_2]
Source link
