If Biden wins election, industry pollution will be a target for climate policies
New York Times journalist Coral Davenport reports that if the president wins re-election, his climate team is likely to try to cut greenhouse gases from steel, cement and other hard-to-clean-up manufacturing.
In a nutshell:
President Biden's potential second term could see a focus on curbing greenhouse gas emissions from high-pollution industries like steel, cement, factories and oil refineries. While these efforts align with his goal to eliminate fossil fuel pollution by 2050, political challenges lie ahead, especially in swing states reliant on these industries, reports Davenport. Biden's climate team envisions a multi-step plan, including incentivizing carbon reduction technologies and potentially imposing a "carbon tariff" on imported goods with high emissions. However, critics argue that addressing global emissions, particularly from countries like China and India, should precede domestic regulations, and concerns about job losses in industries transitioning to cleaner practices persist. The messaging strategy emphasizes extreme weather's impacts and climate denial while acknowledging mixed public opinion on specific climate policies.
Key quote:
“If people look at what this administration has done on climate and say ‘This is enough,’ this country is not going to get to our goals,” said John Larsen, a partner at Rhodium Group, a nonpartisan energy research firm whose analyses are regularly consulted by the White House.
The big picture:
Emissions from high-pollution sectors release harmful pollutants such as particulate matter, volatile organic compounds and greenhouse gases. This pollution contributes to air and water quality degradation, leading to respiratory problems, cardiovascular diseases and cancers in nearby communities. The environmental impact encompasses habitat destruction, soil contamination, and biodiversity loss, exacerbating the global challenge of climate change.
Read the article at the New York Times.
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