In this column distributed by the Ƶ Writers Syndicate, Professor of Biology and T.E. Powell Professor Jr., Dave Gammon discusses the politics of climate change on the heels of recent action by the EPA. This column was published in The Daily Reflector, The Times News, The Daily Advance and the Rocky Mount Telegram.
too often poisons the air we breathe as we think about climate change. This is particularly true when it comes to understanding theby theU.S.Environmental Protection Agency to repeal the Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding established in 2009.
Climate regulation might lose its teeth due to the EPA’s decision, but politically viable climate solutions remain possible.
Many Democrats see climate change as an existential threat. To them, the recent actions of the EPA confirm their pre-existing belief that Republicans actively deny science, and that under Team Trump theUnited Statesis powerless to fight climate change.
Meanwhile, many Republicans are yawning over breakfast. The day after the endangerment finding was repealed, the top headlines atfoxnews.comdescribed various criminal investigations, gerrymandering by Democrats, and a tantalizing story about a NASCAR driver. The EPA story was nowhere to be found.
Lawyers on both sides are steeling themselves for a bitter fight over the science behind the endangerment finding. Lawyers who chant “We Love Trump” are correct that CO2is not a local pollutant and that breathing it in does not endanger anyone. Lawyers who chant “We Hate Trump” are nevertheless correct that climate change has negative effects on the health of Americans, which means CO2can be considered aglobalpollutant.
It remains unclear who will win the legal fight, but to some extent these legal battles are a sideshow. What we really need in our toxic political environment is for partisans to learn from each other.
Republicans need to question their assumption that climate change is a trivial issue. PresidentDonaldTrump is correct that climate regulations sometimes present infuriating problems for business, and he is amazing at controlling the media narrative. But Trump is also an old man who will become irrelevant within just a few years. Just like the nation’s debt, climate change is an ongoing problem, and forward-thinking Republicans cannot dodge the issue forever.
If Democrats stopped treating Republicans as enemies, then conservatives might care more about the climate concerns of liberals.. Younger Republicans know this, and they take the issue much more seriously than their elder colleagues.
Just as the Democratic Party became less relevant by ignoring border problems, the Republican Party will become less relevant if they continue to ignore the importance of climate solutions. In the long run, anyone who agrees with Trump that burning lots of fossil fuels is our best long-term strategy will likely become ostracized in global, business, and even political circles.
Democrats need to question their assumption that the loss of EPA climate regulation means all is lost.. Our contribution is not trivial, but the world does not depend exclusively on the US to fix climate problems. Furthermore,, including under Trump’s first term.
Even under Trump 2.0,. The rest of the planet is also onboard. Just last year, for example,– roughly enough to power the entire East Coast.
Democrats also need to learn that, not by their hatred of science.
A more productive strategy for climate-motivated Democrats would be to seek climate solutions that rely on markets rather than regulation and minimize the role of the federal government. For example,..
Ultimately, EPA regulation is just one of many tools that belongs in a modern environmental toolkit. In a divided society, the most sustainable climate solutions will be tolerable to both Democrats and Republicans.