Down to earth: Biden in the fight against climate change

After four years, the Democratic Party takes a breath of fresh air – but will the planet?

Image from Flickr.

There is no doubt that our planet is under threat and the United States is not exempt from global heating. “It’s almost like denying gravity now,” President-elect Joe Biden stated back in 2015. Unlike his predecessor Donald Trump, who has denied scientific consensus on climate change and reversed much of climate policy, Biden is committed to combatting climate change. In fact, much of his campaign and electoral support depended on it. 

As the expected inauguration date is fast approaching, we hopefully look towards a new chapter in the American environmental policy. But what will this new environmental policy entail? More importantly, will it be enough?

To put the situation into context, under the Trump administration we saw many policies in place to “optimise” efficient energy production, often at the expense of the environment. Trump’s apparent clean air and water priorities were regularly eclipsed by his pursuit to increase oil and natural gas production and, perhaps most famously, Trump left the Paris Climate Agreement in 2017. According to Columbia University, there have been more than 160 significant roll backs of environmental regulations over the last three years. Needless to say, one is plagued with the concept of how the U.S. has not been taking climate change seriously and failing to recognise its urgency. It seems, more than ever, the climate clock is ticking. 

It was no surprise that climate and environmental policy took centre stage in Biden’s campaign - to 68 per cent of his supporters, climate change was “very important” to their vote in the 2020 election, according to Pew Research Centre. Overall, only 42 per cent of registered voters said climate change was “very important” to their vote and 26 per cent said it was a “somewhat important” issue.  

Biden announced the plan for Clean Energy Revolution and Environmental Justice, as well as pledging to recommit the U.S. to the Paris Climate Agreement.  

The ambitious plan speaks for itself: it will make a federal investment of $1.7 trillion over the next 10 years. In what feels like a sharp turn-around from previous years’ policy, this money will be sourced from reversing the excesses of Trump’s corporate tax cuts. The plan aims to ensure the U.S. achieves a 100 per cent clean energy economy as well as achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, arguably going well beyond many of the earlier Obama-Biden policies.  

Biden also emphasises that much of the money will fund necessary research and development for these goals throughout his first term, marking a historic investment into energy, climate innovation and infrastructure.  

“When I think about climate change, the word I think of is ‘jobs’” Biden said during one of his speeches. The president-elect has acknowledged the irrefutable relationship between environmental policy and the economy. As such, he has at the same time promised union jobs and committed himself to addressing environmental injustice, particularly in communities of colour. Above all, he stresses that all decisions are to be driven by data and research, jabbing at Trump’s dismissal of scientific experts. Yet, many have been sceptical of the extent to which Biden will “walk the talk.”

Biden has elaborated on international plans – beyond re-joining the Paris Agreement, the president plans to fully integrate climate change into U.S. foreign policy, national security and trade strategy, setting an international example. This change in direction is crucial if the U.S. is to be taken seriously in global climate talks. 

Having recently named the former secretary of state, John Kerry, as the president’s climate envoy, Biden demonstrates his seriousness in regard to implementing the Clean Energy Plan. Kerry tweeted, “America will soon have a government that treats the climate crisis as the urgent national security threat it is.” Having an official dedicated to the climate crisis sitting on the National Security Council, will not only be a first, but will be highly advantageous upon talks with other nations to cut their emissions. Biden has also announced Gina McCarthy, head of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and a former advisor to Obama, as the White House climate director. She is set to address domestic environmental policy. These forward-looking courses of action suggest climate action is indeed an imminent priority for the Biden administration. 

In an interview with CNN, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris discussed the climate plan: “Our agenda is pretty progressive. And some might call it ambitious. But we, the American people, and frankly the world, can’t afford anything less.” Simply put, the situation remains urgent and, above all, time sensitive.  

Irrespective of their necessity, implementing these policies and innovating the required solutions will not be as easy as promising them. Passing these bills through the Senate has long been viewed as one of the main issues that Biden will face in the upcoming climate crisis battle. However, following two recent victories in Georgia, the Democrats won control over the U.S. Senate, now holding control over the House of Representatives and the Senate. For the first time since 2011, the Democratic party now heads Congress as well as the White House. 

Whilst this definitely increases the Democrats’ ability to determine the legislative agenda, this is not to say that convincing moderate or conservative Democrats to sign such proposals will be less of a challenge. Nevertheless, this power shift will likely contribute to major changes in bringing about progressive climate policy. In many peoples’ books, this is a clear victory for the climate.  

Still, I stand with many others when commenting upon the ambitious nature of this plan. It is almost a given that Biden will not be able to undo all of the Trump administration’s missteps within the climate sphere, as well as initiate the suggested environmental policy in its totality. Obviously, this is the case for all administrations and governments, a conflict in seemingly delivering what was promised.  

In spite of that, it is absolutely necessary that the president-elect sets the U.S. on the path towards clean energy and fights for these green goals. In discussing this, the recent sentiment that “caring about the climate shouldn’t be political” looms in the back of my mind. If anything, the recent election denotes the opposite. Climate action is in all of our interests, so how have we left it on the back burner for so long? It is imperative that we find a balance between economic output and environmental protection, but definitive action towards sustainable solutions and research need be taken – and as Harris said, this needs to be done now. 

It will remain unclear for some time how hard Biden will be pushing in the war against climate change. Perhaps we can take some comfort in knowing that on the League of Conservation Voters’ National Environmental Score Card, Biden achieved a lifetime rating of 83 per cent. I remain optimistic and believe that the Democratic Party will insist on these efforts, domestically and internationally. The unfortunate reality, however, is that while we and the planet endure this painful wait, the clock keeps ticking.  

Regardless, there is hope. Hope that, with the president assuming office, we will look towards an era of climate policy within the White House. Whether the Senate will pass the majority of these bills or not, it is crucial that Biden works towards change by doing what he can using executive orders and implementing new regulations.    

In the meantime, losing a U.S. administration that actively denied climate change is a win in itself.

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