It is widely believed that the possibility of Donald Trump becoming President of the US could cause international plans for tackling climate change to be disrupted. His promises include rolling back the regulations to cut emissions from power plants that were brought in by the Obama government, stopping US funding for climate change programmes, and the cancellation of the UN Paris climate agreement.
Trump in the media
In addition to his infamous remarks about Mexicans and Muslims, Trump has caused alarm throughout the scientific community with his stance on climate change.
According to Ecowatch, Donald Trump is at odds with 97 per cent of the world’s scientific community when he insists that humans are not to blame for climate change. They cite six of his “most outrageous” Tweets, some of which even insist that global warming is a hoax and was created by the Chinese!
Trump’s stance on climate change is likely to appeal particularly to voters in states that produce gas, oil and coal with his call for a rollback of industry regulations. His powerful supporters and financial backers include the fossil fuel industry.
The UN Paris agreement
This agreement has not yet entered into force. This will happen if countries responsible for producing a minimum of 55 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions accept, ratify, accede to or accept the agreement. China and the US jointly represent nearly 40 per cent of these emissions, so negotiators are anxious to finalise the agreement and ensure that it becomes legally binding before the end of President Obama’s presidency.
Decreasing greenhouse gas emissions is vital in the fight against climate change. Emissions are created by many things, from air conditioning in Belfast to manufacturing in Beijing. The demand for air conditioning and refrigeration throughout the world is increasing, and according to The Guardian, it is growing so fast that it is threatening to smash targets for global warming. In today’s society, many people are searching for solutions from companies such as http://www.envirogroup-ni.co.uk/duct-cleaning/kitchen-extraction-ductwork.html, but where possible, we should all be working toward reducing emissions.
Donald Trump remains dangerous, despite losing credibility on the occasions on which he has appeared to be confused about issues related to the environment. Despite a promise to abolish the Environmental Protection Agency, he even appeared to forget the organisation’s name on one occasion.
