By Sam Farfan
As environmental scientists emphasize the urgency of immediate global action to address the current climate crisis, it is important to think critically about what the 2024 presidential election outcome could mean for the planet.
Vice President Kamala Harris has historically advocated for climate justice throughout her political and legal career—from San Francisco district attorney to vice president of the United States.
Harris cast the tie-breaking vote to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest investment in climate action in history. The IRA helped provide approximately $370 billion for clean-energy initiatives and domestic energy production investments and hopes to reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030.
“This historic work is lowering household energy costs, creating hundreds of thousands of high-quality clean energy jobs and building a thriving clean energy economy, all while ensuring America’s energy security and independence with record energy production,” Harris’ presidential campaign website states.
During her time as California attorney general, Harris filed civil lawsuits against oil companies such as Phillips 66 and ConocoPhillips for violating California anti-pollution laws. These oil refineries were sued in 2013 for lack of proper inspection and maintenance of underground gasoline storage tanks at more than 560 gas stations throughout California. Harris landed a $11.5 million settlement.
Similarly, Harris garnered a $14 million settlement with BP Products North America, Inc. and ARCO in 2016 for violating underground motor vehicle fuel storage tank maintenance laws.
In May 2015, Harris partnered with Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce E. Dudley to conduct a criminal investigation against Plains All-American Pipeline on 46 criminal charges for releasing approximately 140,000 gallons of crude oil.
However, Harris’ perspective on fracking and offshore drilling has shifted in recent years. She pointed out oil and gas production has soared, even as the Biden-Harris administration made milestones in clean energy in recent years.
“I will not ban fracking. I did not as vice president. In fact, I cast the tie-breaking vote to open up more fracking leases,” Harris said, according to an exclusive interview with KDKA-TV. She said the U.S. cannot over-rely on foreign oil and energy supply.
This contradiction has caused distrust among the public and environmental scientists as fracking and offshore drilling continue to contribute to destruction of the climate and natural resources.
Former President Donald Trump has a long history of climate crisis rejection in the media, often stating that man-made climate change is a myth. The Trump administration is responsible for hundreds of environmental policy rollbacks, including many focused on clean water, air, wildlife and regulation of toxic waste and chemicals.
Trump’s administration weakened regulations that lower mercury emissions from coal-fueled power plants—which resulted in a lawsuit against the administration by an alliance of 29 states in 2019. Other policy rollbacks include when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rescinded rules aimed to reduce air toxins from sewage treatment plants and protect waterways from debris generated by surface mining, among many others.
In 2017, Trump announced plans to reduce the EPA’s 2018 budget by at least 31%, the largest budget cut to any domestic federal agency. The Trump administration proposed eliminating over 50 programs and cutting over 3,200 positions, impacting public health regulation.
In 2020, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the historic Paris Agreement, a United Nations treaty with the aim to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and limit the rise in global temperature. Before the U.S. rejoined the Paris Agreement in early 2021 during President Joe Biden’s administration, the U.S. was the first and only nation to formally withdraw from this agreement.
If elected, Trump has promised to withdraw from the Paris Agreement for a second time. According to an exclusive interview with Channel 11, Trump said, “…we pay a trillion dollars at least and we’re going to take them out so fast your head will spin. It’s a ridiculous, one-sided deal. All they did with the Paris Accord was take advantage environmentally of the United States and we’re not going to stand for it.”
In an attempt to replace former President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan, a set of regulations to significantly curb carbon pollution from coal-powered facilities, Trump’s EPA proposed the Affordable Clean Energy rule. This plan would boost American coal consumption and promote coal as residents’ primary fuel source for residential electricity, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Historically, Trump has weakened environmental protections and fossil fuel industry regulations even as climate change has been noted as the world’s biggest health threat.
Both candidates for the presidential election have controversial track records on environmental policies and climate justice.
