General
There’s no doubt that Donald Trump’s election landslide victory over Vice President Kamala Harris is a disaster for climate change and the environment in the U.S. and around the world.
Just like in 2016, Trump has promised to promote fossil fuel policies aggressively, reduce climate disaster preparedness, dismantle key environmental agencies, and roll back clean energy initiatives and environmental oversight.
“You are looking at, overall, a ‘drill baby drill’ philosophy,” Dan Eberhart, chief executive officer of oilfield services company Canary LLC, told Bloomberg News. “You are going to see offshore lease sales, you are going to see pipelines move much quicker, you are going to see fracking on federal lands and a mindset that is focused on lowering energy costs for consumers.”
But with just days before the start of the UN’s COP 29, the most important annual climate conference, Trump’s victory will have major consequences that could severely hobble international efforts at tackling climate change.
“The US at this COP is not just a lame duck, it’s a dead duck,” Prof Richard Klein, an expert on climate change policy for the Stockholm Environment Institute, told the BBC. “They can’t commit to anything and that means that countries like China will not want to commit to anything.”
Under Trump, the United States will again take a step back from its position as a leader on global climate policy to embrace the murky and economically lucrative world of oil and gas. Trump will likely withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement for a second time. At the same time, domestic issues around environmental justice, water, and air pollution will also fall in the list of priorities if the Heritage Foundations’ extreme-right Project 2025 governance playbook is enacted.
But even with such an undeniable mandate from the electorate, there are more than a few encouraging environmental gifts nestled among the many piles of coal. There could be a major ecological reprieve in the unlikely shape of Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man, who endorsed Trump in July.
While Musk started his entrepreneurial life as a gung-ho climate change believer and environmental guardian, even stepping down from Trump’s advisory council in 2017 after the Paris climate withdrawal, he has since changed his views somewhat.
Not least when he became a major donor for climate deniers Trump and his VP pick J.D. Vance, but don’t be fooled, Musk is still very much in favor of the environment, climate change mitigation and clean energy. Trump seems to be listening.
Trump said earlier this year that he had “no choice” but to support electric vehicles because “Elon endorsed me.” In September, Musk said in a series of tweets that the world wasn’t using enough solar and that it would eventually become the only energy source.
If Musk can convince Trump to embrace his energy ideology, which advocates shifting away from oil and gas without vilifying it, it could gain the trust of skeptical Conservatives and lift the GOP’s anti-renewable energy veil.
“Elon may be able to help Trump think through this a little bit differently,” U.S. Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana told Politico in August. “How do you do this in a way that actually makes sense, checking both an economic sustainability box and an environmental sustainability box?”
But even if Musk doesn’t come out good, there are still things to be hopeful about.
Among what will appear to be a congressional bloodbath for Democrats, losing control of both chambers, dozens of pro-climate members retained their seats and won open elections. At the ballot box, even in red states, voters put their weight behind green initiatives aimed at environmental conservation, clean water, infrastructure, and extreme weather, totaling billions of dollars.
“When the issue of conservation and climate is highlighted and elevated on the ballot, we find time and again that voters overwhelmingly support these initiatives,” said The Nature Conservancy’s senior director of strategy Adam Snyder. “This year is no different, with 66% of voters supporting conservation and climate proposals.”
At the ballot box, voters overwhelmingly sided with the environment.
State and Local Ballot Measures
Arizona: win
Preserved the governor’s emergency powers at 120 days, allowing greater flexibility in dealing with climate and environment emergencies without requesting permission from Congress every 30 days. The state consistently experiences drought and weeks of 100F heat.
California: win
Authorized a $10 billion climate bond that funds climate resilience, protecting clean drinking water and preventing catastrophic wildfires.
Colorado: loss
Maintained the legal right to trophy hunt mountain lions, bobcats, and lynx.
Colorado: win
Removed the cap for water funding from an existing tax on sports gaming revenue, which will generate an additional $2 to $5 million.
Dupage, Kane and Lake counties, Ill.: win
Authorized more than $500 million for conservation and forest preserve districts to buy land, maintain existing public places and improve public recreation opportunities.
Florida: loss
Added the right to hunt and fish to the state constitution, potentially weakening wildlife protections and property rights, and prioritizing hunting over sustainable conservation methods.
Jasper County, S.C.: win
Added a sales tax for transportation, including a greenbelt component for land conservation that totals $94 million over the program’s life.
Louisiana: win
Chose to direct federal revenues received by the state from energy production (such as wind, solar, tidal, wave and other alternative or renewable energy sources) to the Coastal Protection and Restoration Fund.
Maine: win
Authorized $30 million in bonds over four years to design, develop, and maintain trails across Maine.
Minnesota: win
Renewed of the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund for another 25 years. The fund will provide $2 billion ($80 million per year from state lottery proceeds) to protect water, land, and wildlife across the state.
Rhode Island: win
Allowed $53 million environmental bond to fund various programs, including open space and parks, coastal resilience, forest management and restoration, farmland protection, brownfield reclamation and upgrading a port facility to support offshore wind development.
South Dakota: loss
Repealed a carbon dioxide pipeline regulation that weakens environmental and safety standards.
Suffolk County, N.Y.: win
Approved a ballot measure that will generate $6 billion for clean water and conservation over the next 30 years.
Washington: win
Defeated an effort to roll back the state’s Climate Commitment Act. The CCA provides millions for conservation, climate and wildfire funding, including funding for Tribal nations and at-risk communities.
Washington: loss
Preserved access to natural gas, landing a blow to advocates who want the state to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.
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