Why the United States is Unreliable When it Comes to Climate Change

The Biden Administration has begun to outline its goals for combatting climate change.

“President Biden [announced] a new target for the United States to achieve a 50-52 percent reduction from 2005 levels in economy-wide net greenhouse gas pollution in 2030” (FACT sheet: President Biden Sets 2030 greenhouse gas pollution reduction TARGET aimed at Creating GOOD-PAYING union jobs and Securing U.S. leadership on clean energy technologies 2021)

Many people (especially right-leaning voters) are saying that Biden’s agenda is ambitious. But is it really?

Biden’s goals for reducing emissions and pollutants are realistically a goal that the United States should have been achieving years ago. However, part of the reason that the United States has not reached these goals thus far has partly to do (no mostly to do) with politics.

As the party of the president shifts usually, every four years so do the policies regarding most highly debated issues including climate change. This can mostly be seen in the vast changes in policy over the last eight years.

During the Obama era, President Obama made huge strides to work on climate change by committing to the Paris Agreement. However, the following cycle when Donald Trump became president he quickly pulled out of the Paris agreement. Now four years later we are in this seemingly dizzy cycle where Biden is rejoining the United States in the Paris agreement.

So what does this roundabout cycle do for climate change policies on a global scale?

In short, it makes other countries not trust us as much.

The United States has been the leader in many changes around the world and countries usually look to the United States to make the first move. However, countries are more reluctant to follow the United States’ lead in regards to climate change because as shown through the Trump era any changes/steps forward can easily be reversed by the next president.

The United States needs to implement policies that will not be easily reversible. The administration needs to start making big steps, much like what the Biden administration is suggesting in order to show other countries that we are willing to take the steps to make long-lasting impacts.

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Sources:

FACT Sheet: President Biden Sets 2030 greenhouse gas pollution reduction TARGET aimed at Creating GOOD-PAYING union jobs and Securing U.S. leadership on clean energy technologies. (2021, April 22). Retrieved April 30, 2021, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-sets-2030-greenhouse-gas-pollution-reduction-target-aimed-at-creating-good-paying-union-jobs-and-securing-u-s-leadership-on-clean-energy-technologies/