Policy

New Survey Shows Majority Of Americans Believe Climate Change Is Real And Caused By Human Activity

Farron Cousins | July 6, 2017

By Farron Cousins • Thursday, July 6, 2017 - 09:38

The current leadership in the United States — the U.S. House of Representatives, the Senate, and the White House — have a hostile relationship with climate change science. Not only has current President Donald Trump suggested that the entire concept is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, but the Legislative Branch of government is populated with a majority of representatives who do not accept the scientific consensus regarding climate change. Not only are these views dangerous for the future of the planet, but a new poll shows that these views are entirely out of sync with a majority of the U.S. population.

According to a new report by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, a majority of people in the United States believe that climate change is real and that it is mostly the result of human activities. The survey shows that 58% of the public now accepts that climate change is mostly caused by human activity, which is the highest level ever recorded of public acceptance of the human role in climate change since Yale began conducting these studies in 2008.

US Air Quality Improving but White House Looking to Reverse That Progress

Farron Cousins | April 24, 2017

By Farron Cousins • Monday, April 24, 2017 - 14:43

Smokestacks emitting pollution

The American Lung Association (ALA) released its “State of the Air” report last week, and the organization found that air quality in U.S. cities has improved in the time period from 2012–2014. The ALA report specifically cites the increased air quality protections and emission reduction programs that first began popping up in the U.S. to improve air quality in the 1970s.

While overall air quality improved in the major cities studied in the report, the ALA did note that short periods of increased air particulate contamination existed in many areas. Furthermore, the ALA added that at least 166 million Americans are currently living in areas where the level of air contaminants exceeds safe limits.

The timing of this report is very important, as the group is hoping to use this information to convince the Trump administration not to repeal or otherwise weaken air quality standards enacted by the Obama administration.

Gutting The EPA Will Put Millions Of Lives, And The Economy, At Risk

Farron Cousins | December 17, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Saturday, December 17, 2016 - 04:58

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has made it clear that his administration is going to be hostile towards his predecessor’s environmental policies, going as far as to promise a massive roll back of current environmental protections.

This is all  under the guise of reducing bureaucratic red tape that is supposedly hindering energy development. While there are plenty of studies available that refute the “excessive regulations hurt businesses” talking points, those studies haven’t seemed to penetrate the climate denial shield that some politicians have surrounded themselves in, so a different approach is called for.

Donald Trump’s Anti-Environment Agenda Could Tank US Economy

Farron Cousins | November 19, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Saturday, November 19, 2016 - 04:58

United States President-elect Donald Trump has already made it clear that his administration will be far more friendly to fossil fuel companies than it will be to the environment, both with his appointment of noted climate change denier Myron Ebell to head up the EPA transition team, and with his stated desire to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement.

While Ebell’s appointment spells environmental disaster, it is Trump’s desire to withdraw from the Paris Agreement that could cripple the United States both environmentally and economically. And it is that second point – the economic impacts – that might actually have a chance of resonating with the American public.

Obama Takes Action, Says Climate Change Must Be Factored Into National Security Assessments

Farron Cousins | October 3, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Monday, October 3, 2016 - 09:30

Nearly eleven months ago, Senator Bernie Sanders stated plainly in the first Democratic Presidential debate that climate change was the number one national security threat to the United States (every other Democratic contender said ISIS). Sanders took an incredible amount of heat from the Republican Party following his claims, but both Republican and Democratic administrations and military leaders have made it clear that climate change is a top security threat.

While discussion of climate change has all but disappeared from the United States Presidential race following Sanders’ exit, in a “blink and you’ll miss it” moment on September 21st, President Obama signed a directive ordering federal agencies to begin factoring climate change into their national security plans. Every federal agency, from the FDA to the EPA to the Pentagon, has a national security plan to address a threat to the specific area of regulation, and thanks to Obama’s new directive, combatting the effects of climate change are now required in those plans.

Obama Again Sounds Climate Change Alarm But Continues Supporting Fossil Fuel Industry

Farron Cousins | September 9, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Friday, September 9, 2016 - 12:52

President Barak Obama on a hike in Hawaii.

On September 8, The New York Times published an interview with President Barack Obama in which he discussed the rapidly approaching, and already present, dangers of climate change, along with the threats that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would pose to the environment as president.

Reflecting on his climate legacy in the interview, President Obama reinforced his concerns about and dedication to acting on climate change, but his rhetoric fails to match up with his broader record, which notably includes overseeing the United States' rise to the top spot among fossil fuel producers worldwide.

Environmental Groups United To Fight Donald Trump

Farron Cousins | June 14, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Tuesday, June 14, 2016 - 03:58

Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has never been shy about making statements that push the boundaries of what is acceptable in a civilized society, but his constant attacks on climate science have become yet another liability for the Republican candidate.

The Hill is reporting that environmental groups, including the NRDC and the Sierra Club, are hoping to rally voters concerned about the environment to vote for Hillary Clinton over Trump in the 2016 election to help protect the environment.

From The Hill:

Donald Trump Lays Out Disastrous Energy Plan, Denies Climate Science Again

Farron Cousins | May 26, 2016

By Farron Cousins • Thursday, May 26, 2016 - 13:38

News flash: Donald Trump has proven again that he would be a disastrous President who would let our planet fry. Today, he added further insult to existing injury, launching a jaw-dropping energy speech that defies reality.

April 2016 set a record as the hottest April on record since temperatures were first recorded. Unfortunately, this was not a fluke; This has become the “new normal.” April was the 12th consecutive month that broke monthly high-temperature records. In other words, the last twelve months have been the hottest months ever recorded for each respective month.

The Democratic candidates that have run for Party’s nomination have all been on the same page in terms of accepting the scientific consensus that the atmosphere is warming up and that human activity is the biggest cause. But the Republican candidates, a pool that has been whittled down to include only Donald Trump, have consistently declared that climate change is a hoax.

The New York Times explains Donald Trump’s previous comments about climate and energy as follows:

2015 In Review: A Great Year For The Environment

Farron Cousins | December 31, 2015

By Farron Cousins • Thursday, December 31, 2015 - 06:58

Environmental victories are rare. Even with mounting scientific evidence that reckless human activities are endangering our future, politicians and corporations have continued to run roughshod over the planet, destroying the very home that sustains our lives.

For too long, environmentalists were seen as a small part of a political movement that focused on an issue that most Americans greeted with a yawn. After all, the most damning climate science has emerged at a time when the threat of global terrorism and economic downturns were grabbing all of the headlines.

But 2015 signaled a change for the environmental movement.

As CO2 Levels Rise, Obama Still All Talk And No Action

Farron Cousins | November 14, 2015

By Farron Cousins • Saturday, November 14, 2015 - 05:58

President Obama is once again talking out of both sides of his mouth with regard to the need to protect the environment.

After joining Facebook last week, the President used his very first video post to address the issue of climate change. The President said in the video: “Now, we've made a lot of progress to cut carbon pollution here at home, and we're leading the world to take action as well. But we’ve got to do more. In a few weeks, I’m heading to Paris to meet with world leaders about a global agreement to meet this challenge.”

While the President’s detractors attacked him for believing something so foolish, the people who have been paying attention to Obama’s actions in recent years have an entirely different, and legitimate, reason to question the President’s message. Namely, President Obama has done very little to fulfill his lofty promises about tackling climate change.

Yes, we got a rule from the EPA to limit emissions from coal-fired power plants. Yes, the Keystone XL pipeline has been rejected (for now.) And yes, we finally have a President of the United States that both accepts the science of climate change and believes that we should do something about it. But that’s roughly where the accomplishments end.

Pages

Subscribe to Policy