We all know that Trump believes global warming to be a hoax, but do people support his opinion? I truly don’t believe that Trump supporters believe the pressing issue is fake, however, they will remain loyal to their “beloved” President and thus support whatever he says. Yesterday, March 26th, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA for short, released a statement saying that the Trump Administration has decided to sign a new Executive Order which will repeal President Obama’s efforts to prevent further climate change effects; The Clean Power Plan. Does this man truly not think climate change is a real thing? Does he want our environment to deteriorate?
The Clean Power Plan was proposed in 2014 and was announced by President Obama, himself, in 2015. This plan strives to strengthen the trend of clean energy by setting standards for power plants and goals for states to cut their carbon dioxide pollution. The plan would reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electrical power generation by 32 percent within twenty-five years relative to 2005 levels. The plan is focused on reducing emissions from coal-burning power plants, as well as increasing the use of renewable energy, and energy conservation. It has been proven that the epidemic of global warming is primarily caused by pollution; whether it be in the air, water, or city/suburb environments. Obama’s Clean Power Plan would reduce pollution that is caused by factories, eliminating majority of the air pollution throughout the nation. So why take this away?
I am not the only person who thinks this is ridiculous, as you could probably assume. People in government, who work for our President, have decided to rebel against his actions. Seventeen Republicans in Congress signed a resolution in which they will seek for more “economically viable” ways to curve global warming. It amazes me that people of the same party, who supported Trump during his campaign, are now realizing that his policies are completely ignorant. Each of these seventeen Republicans seem to represent parts of the country that is affected most by climate change. These Republicans have begun to contact U.S. energy companies in an effort to receive their input on the situation and how to resolve it. Science has undoubtedly proven that human activity, such as the burning of oil, coal, and gas, is the main cause of climate change today. The pollution that occurs each day from people all over the country is the leading cause of human activity that affects the environment negatively. Majority of Republicans do not believe the idea that humans are causing climate change, hence why they follow behind Trump’s idea that it is all a hoax.
We pollute the air and water every day and do not even realize it. Simple tasks that we complete throughout our daily routines are the leading factors in climate change- things that we do not even think about, we just do it. Driving a car is the number one every day cause of pollution. Cars produce significant amounts of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and other pollution. In 2013, transportation contributed more than half of the carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides, and almost a quarter of the hydrocarbons emitted into our air. Clearly, “normal people” like us cannot convince Trump to hold back on repealing the Obama Administration’s policies, but we can convince those around us to change up our daily routines in order to make them more environmentally friendly.
For starters, if everyone began walking or riding a bike more, we can reduce the amount of air pollution caused by cars daily. Not only will you reduce your carbon footprint, but your overall level of health will improve and you will save money on parking and gasoline. If your destination is too far to walk, try to carpool or take public transportation as much as possible. Doing so will reduce the amount of people on the roads. Say that you and four friends have to drive to school. Instead of all five of you taking five separate cars, you can all carpool, which reduces the amount of carbon monoxides and nitrogen oxides released into our air.
Another simple, at home task you can complete is saving water. Although you may not think it affects anything, keeping the water running while brushing your teeth is harmful, as the amount of water wasted builds up. Turn it off! Another way is to use water conserving products, such as a Brita Filter or a Watersense Label. Running a dishwasher with a full load instead of half will save water over time, as you do not need to constantly be wasting the water by multiple dishwashing cycles. If you need to water your grass or flowers, try to cut back on the amount you use. Only water when needed, and do it during the coolest part of the day; early morning is best.
There are so many opportunities for regular people like us to make a difference with this changing climate. We do not need a hot-headed, ignorant man telling us that “Global Warming was a concept created for and by the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive”. No, seriously, he said that.
If we all work together and start using these tips, plus more, to help our environment, we can prevent the spread of global warming. You may find more tips at the link down below!
Tips to reduce climate change:
https://www.epa.gov/climatechange/what-you-can-do-home
Sources:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/03/26/epa-chief-trump-to-undo-obama-plan-to-curb-global-warming.html
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-climatechange-congress-idUSKBN16M235
Also if you want a laugh:
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/11/trump-climate-timeline