Joe biden's greenhouse gas policies

Written by: Emma Shuen Lee (21-O1), Katelyn Joshy (21-U1), Lay Kai En, Ashley (21-O1), Lim Junheng, Jovan (20-O5), Lim Zi Loong, Zexel (21-E2), Rakshita Murugan (21-E1), Soh Iwin (20-E5), Young Wai Ming, Nicholas (20-E5)

Designed by: Leanne Soh Li En (21-E6)

Introduction

UCLA political scientist Michael Ross once said, “climate change comes from the collective weight of all our economic activities around the world”. Carbon emissions are radically uneven and the political economy of climate change is steered by the interests and motivations of large economic actors, such as legislators through greenhouse gas (GHG) policies. The United States of America currently ranks second to China in global greenhouse gas emissions, with its fossil fuel industry feeding about 81% of the nation’s energy demands. Large corporations are mostly responsible for the burgeoning GHG emissions levels as industries often impede adoption of cleaner energy production methods out of self-preservation.

Background of the USA’s efforts in its Climate History

As the world’s largest economy and second-largest greenhouse gas emitter, the US plays a significant role in addressing the climate crisis. However, in the past four years, the US has been absent in the global fight against climate change. This was made stunningly clear under the Trump Administration, which repealed Obama’s Clean Power Plan that had aimed to reduce emissions from the energy sector. In its place, the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) act was introduced. This policy regulated carbon dioxide emissions from coal plants instead of  overall emissions. Analysis showed that the act increased emissions of GHGs and other air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, resulting in poorer air quality which adversely affected human health. 

Furthermore, Trump formally withdrew the US from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. This was not the first time an American President has dropped a global climate deal. In March 2001, the then President George W. Bush announced the US would withdraw from the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the predecessor of the Paris Climate Agreement. The Kyoto Protocol set emissions targets for industrialised countries, aiming to reduce global carbon emissions. Bush, like Trump, believed that the deal would negatively impact the US economy. These withdrawals not only left a chasm in America’s international leadership and credibility, but also further hindered global efforts to curb climate change. 

However, not all hope is lost. In an era when polarisation hinders progress, a recent survey by Pew Research Center revealed that “broad majorities of the public – including more than half of Republicans and overwhelming shares of Democrats – say they favor a range of initiatives to reduce the impacts of climate change”. Since inauguration, Biden has acted on the climate swiftly, rejoining the Paris Agreement and unveiling a new greenhouse gas policy.

An introduction to Biden’s Greenhouse Gas Policy

In April, Biden pledged to reduce the US’s greenhouse gas emissions by 50 - 52% by 2030. This nearly doubles the previous pledge of 26 - 28% made by former President Barack Obama. 

As part of his pledge, Biden also mentioned that the US would be hosting a virtual session to announce this target, which would be attended by close to 40 countries, including major carbon emitters like China and India. He hoped that this would spur the attendee nations to ramp up measures to curb climate change before they discuss this issue in the United Nations again in November. Overall, this is a heartening step that the US is taking to reunite with global efforts to combat climate change, after four years of neglect from the Trump administration. 

What do people think about this policy?

As Biden announced the rough outline of his plan on climate change to 40 other world leaders at the Summit on Climate, he drew support from many other leaders present such as Germany’s Angela Merkel and even unlikely allies such as Chinese Premier Xi Jinping and Russian President Putin, who both expressed willingness for collaboration on the issue of climate change. 

Aside from world leaders, Biden’s plan has also garnered praise from environmentalists all over the world, including the director of the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Robert Kopp, who praised the Biden administration for demonstrating its commitment in tackling the problem of climate change. Many academics have also added that Biden’s policies have revealed an understanding on the administration’s part, the true concerns in reaching net zero emissions such as the indegenious peoples. Some have even expressed encouragement for the administration to continue in its efforts. 

While the plan by Biden has been widely acclaimed as a foreseeable success, it still faces some opposition. A pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will hurt the traditional energy sector jobs, harming the economy.

However, hope is not lost. In April, the US’s largest coal miners’ union said it will move away from coal and other fossil fuels, and towards a “true energy transition” which is a hopeful statement for a new job market in the energy sector. This can be said to be a breakthrough in the path towards environmental sustainability — a leading example for other sectors to work towards. While this journey will not be easy, it goes to show that even the greatest of problems can be solved with deeper considerations of industrial shifts for troubled sectors.

Critics have also mentioned that an immediate drop in GHG emissions is not feasible through Biden’s policies. While it is questionable whether Biden can effectively carry out his plans for environmental sustainability in an economic crisis, he recently announced robust reliefs for COVID-19 recovery and to boost America’s economy. In a constant struggle between the prioritising of the  environment vs economy, the world will wait in anticipation as the policies are implemented.

Conclusion

The next step for the US would be to reevaluate areas where GHG emissions are in excess, and find a way to offset this load onto greener production methods without slowing down the pace of the economy. For a country pivoted around its major industries, namely some such as petroleum and steel production, there is a limit to how much carbon emissions the US can cut down. After all, it was the second largest contributor to global GHG emissions at 15% in 2014, just behind China at 30%, and this dynamic has not changed since then. Even though the pandemic may have significantly reduced carbon emissions across the board in 2020, we can only  observe if countries are truly more efficient in addressing energy demands than in the past, which is what today’s policy makers have claimed to be responsible for.

Bibliography

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