Goodbye clean air, hello sky-high electricity bills: America’s climate under Project 2025
[ad_1]
Project 2025—a controversial 922-page playbook for the next president’s administration—includes sweeping proposals on everything from abortion to child labor laws. There is also a need to stop the “war on oil and natural gas” with a long list of climate action, starting with eliminating clean energy incentives.
In a new analysis, researchers from the nonpartisan energy and climate policy think tank Energy Innovation calculated what it would mean for the climate if the Trump administration was able to implement all of the energy proposals of Project 2025. Then they compared that to what would happen if Kamala Harris won the next election and continued progress. of the climate that began under the Biden administration.
Current climate policy has “put the United States within striking distance” of Biden’s goal of cutting the country’s emissions in half by 2030, Energy Innovation CEO Anand Gopal said at a press conference. The choices of the next president would make it possible to achieve that goal, and reach the next zero emissions by 2050, even if it would significantly increase carbon emissions. “The United States faces a fork in the road starting in January 2025 with two very different climate and energy policy paths,” Gopal said.
Current climate policy of interest
Two years ago, Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the most ambitious climate law ever passed in the US (Vice President Harris cast a dissenting vote.) In the first year after the act’s passage, utilities announced $1 billion -270. new renewable energy projects. Millions of Americans are already claiming $8.4 billion in clean energy and efficiency tax credits for their homes. Along with the Dual Infrastructure Act and CHIPS, the IRA also helped create more than 334,000 jobs, Energy Innovation estimates.
The Biden administration also imposed new fuel economy standards for cars, stricter emissions limits for power plants, and put in place a long list of other climate policies, including a plan for a national network of EV chargers.
To follow the goals of the Paris climate agreement, the next president will need to do more, including helping factories electrify and setting even stricter clean energy standards. Under what Energy Innovation calls “sustainable climate leadership”, it is possible to reach the goal of halving emissions by 2030 (compared to 2005 levels). This scenario will lead to a 70% drop in emissions by 2035, and net zero by mid-century.
Climate impact of the 2025 project
Project 2025, in contrast, proposes multiple repeals of the Depreciation and Inflation Act and the Bilateral Infrastructure Act. That includes tax credits for clean energy and zero-emission vehicles, among many other incentives. The plan also proposes increased natural gas exports, increased oil and gas leasing, and the elimination of energy efficiency standards. It calls for tougher fuel economy standards for cars. It says the EPA should not regulate greenhouse gases.
Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025, which was released by the conservative Heritage Foundation. But many writers have been part of his previous administration, and there is little sign that he disagrees with the program’s basic approach to power. (In his previous administration, 64% of the proposals in the document from the same group ended up being used.)
The Energy Innovation analysis looks at what could happen if the entire Project 2025 energy playbook is successful. Emissions, not surprisingly, can be very high. Between 2025 and 2050, the US will emit 76 billion more tons of CO2 compared to the “sustainable climate leadership” scenario. Thousands of Americans will die prematurely from air pollution each year. Project 2025 will also increase electricity prices and rely on electricity. Overall, by 2050, households would spend an estimated $147 billion more each year than under a climate-friendly approach. Millions of jobs will be lost. GDP will decrease by $320 billion annually by 2030, and decline by $130 billion annually by 2050.
“I think putting numbers on it is really amazing,” said Lena Moffitt, executive director of the climate advocacy group Evergreen Action. “I knew there was a big difference between the two futures we are facing, but this is disappointing.
Project 2025 “will cost us millions of jobs, hundreds of millions of dollars in GDP, our place as a world leader in clean technology and energy transitions, and it will literally cost people their lives,” he said. “We are at a high point where this is an election for the results of the state of the country. . . we are facing irreversible tipping points in the next few years. Who is president this next term will, in many ways, determine the fate of all of us. And these numbers reflect that. “
[ad_2]
Source link
