As results of the recent US presidential election begin to set in, many of us have become more familiar with Trump’s incoming policies. While most of them are particularly distasteful, one of Trump’s most controversial policies stands out: his stance on the environmental crisis.
He’s promised a withdrawal from green energy programs, and encouragement of the coal and oil industry, essentially contributing to the downfall of our planet. He’s even appointed climate change denier, Myron Ebell, as head of the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).
However, there is a glimmer of hope within the environmentalist community. Although Trump may be a loudmouth, actions speak louder than words, and two environmental policies that will be quite hard for Trump to break down include the Clean Power Plan and the Clean Water Rule.
Since both plans were implemented in 2015, they’ve been in action for about a year now, which “…makes them the hardest to undo,” says Stuart Shapiro, a public-policy professor at Rutgers University who was a regulatory official under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
This is mainly because they’ve been implemented and acted upon long enough to be resistant to the Congressional Review Act (CRA), a law Republicans passed 20 years ago which gives Congress 60 legislative days to override agencies’ actions without burdening the Senate with the need to round up 60 votes to do so, as is the case with almost all other legislation.
President Obama implemented the Clean Power Plan on August 3, 2015, through the EPA, which focuses on reducing carbon emission from power plants nationwide. Through this plan, everyone has an advantage, humans and otherwise. The Clean Water Rule, implemented shortly before on June 29, 2015, does what it implies: ensures the supply of running water within the US are pollution free and addresses any violations. Many republican oriented groups are sternly against this rule since it extends to small bodies of water near farms as well. Trump has very specifically pledged to get rid of the latter law, although putting words into actions would prove to be a difficult process.
While the future is foggy, the best thing to do in the face of adversity is to stand together for what we support. Remember, organizations such as Greenpeace aren’t going down without a fight, either. By donating and supporting environmentalist organizations, we can help keep this world alive, even with a powerful force against us.
