SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt speaks after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision to pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement in the Rose Garden at the White House June 1, 2017 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
If President Donald Trump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hadn't already made it abundantly clear that addressing climate change is near the very bottom of its list of priorities, the agency's newly unveiled four-year "strategic plan" should remove all doubt, as it does not contain a single mention of "climate change"--or even just "climate."
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency."
--Dr. Rachel Cleetus, Union of Concerned ScientistsThe 38-page draft, quietly made available for public comment last week, also neglects to mention "carbon dioxide," "greenhouse gases," or "renewable energy."
By contrast, former President Barack Obama's EPA made addressing climate change the first of the agency's five stated goals in its 2014 strategic plan--which used the phrase "climate change" more than 40 times.
Dr. Rachel Cleetus, climate policy manager with the Union of Concerned Scientists, called the EPA's scrubbing of climate change from its report "stunning," and argued that it was no accident.
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency," Cleetus said. "This wasn't an oversight, this is a deliberate strategy by this administration."
Since his inauguration--and particularly since his nomination of oil and gas industry favorite Scott Pruitt to head the EPA--Trump has moved quickly to dismantle even the more modest climate achievements of his predecessor. According to a New York Times analysis, 25 environmental rules have been successfully axed, and at least 19 are currently being rolled back.
"Regulations have often been reversed as a direct response to petitions from oil, coal, and gas companies and other industry groups," the Times notes. "Scott Pruitt...has met almost daily with industry executives and lobbyists."
Despite the fact that the EPA's new "strategic plan" declares that the agency's number one priority is "to provide Americans with clean air, land, and water," many of the agency's moves have taken precisely the opposite track.
As Common Dreams reported, the Trump administration has just this week moved to scrap the Clean Power Plan and intensified its "war on wind and solar" by suggesting that federal subsides for these sources of renewable energy should be eliminated.
At the same time, notes Oil Change International's Janet Redman, Trump is "using our taxpayer dollars to promote dangerous new fossil fuel development," placing the nation's air and water quality at serious risk.
Donald Trump’s attacks on democracy, justice, and a free press are escalating — putting everything we stand for at risk. We believe a better world is possible, but we can’t get there without your support. Common Dreams stands apart. We answer only to you — our readers, activists, and changemakers — not to billionaires or corporations. Our independence allows us to cover the vital stories that others won’t, spotlighting movements for peace, equality, and human rights. Right now, our work faces unprecedented challenges. Misinformation is spreading, journalists are under attack, and financial pressures are mounting. As a reader-supported, nonprofit newsroom, your support is crucial to keep this journalism alive. Whatever you can give — $10, $25, or $100 — helps us stay strong and responsive when the world needs us most. Together, we’ll continue to build the independent, courageous journalism our movement relies on. Thank you for being part of this community. |
If President Donald Trump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hadn't already made it abundantly clear that addressing climate change is near the very bottom of its list of priorities, the agency's newly unveiled four-year "strategic plan" should remove all doubt, as it does not contain a single mention of "climate change"--or even just "climate."
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency."
--Dr. Rachel Cleetus, Union of Concerned ScientistsThe 38-page draft, quietly made available for public comment last week, also neglects to mention "carbon dioxide," "greenhouse gases," or "renewable energy."
By contrast, former President Barack Obama's EPA made addressing climate change the first of the agency's five stated goals in its 2014 strategic plan--which used the phrase "climate change" more than 40 times.
Dr. Rachel Cleetus, climate policy manager with the Union of Concerned Scientists, called the EPA's scrubbing of climate change from its report "stunning," and argued that it was no accident.
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency," Cleetus said. "This wasn't an oversight, this is a deliberate strategy by this administration."
Since his inauguration--and particularly since his nomination of oil and gas industry favorite Scott Pruitt to head the EPA--Trump has moved quickly to dismantle even the more modest climate achievements of his predecessor. According to a New York Times analysis, 25 environmental rules have been successfully axed, and at least 19 are currently being rolled back.
"Regulations have often been reversed as a direct response to petitions from oil, coal, and gas companies and other industry groups," the Times notes. "Scott Pruitt...has met almost daily with industry executives and lobbyists."
Despite the fact that the EPA's new "strategic plan" declares that the agency's number one priority is "to provide Americans with clean air, land, and water," many of the agency's moves have taken precisely the opposite track.
As Common Dreams reported, the Trump administration has just this week moved to scrap the Clean Power Plan and intensified its "war on wind and solar" by suggesting that federal subsides for these sources of renewable energy should be eliminated.
At the same time, notes Oil Change International's Janet Redman, Trump is "using our taxpayer dollars to promote dangerous new fossil fuel development," placing the nation's air and water quality at serious risk.
If President Donald Trump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hadn't already made it abundantly clear that addressing climate change is near the very bottom of its list of priorities, the agency's newly unveiled four-year "strategic plan" should remove all doubt, as it does not contain a single mention of "climate change"--or even just "climate."
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency."
--Dr. Rachel Cleetus, Union of Concerned ScientistsThe 38-page draft, quietly made available for public comment last week, also neglects to mention "carbon dioxide," "greenhouse gases," or "renewable energy."
By contrast, former President Barack Obama's EPA made addressing climate change the first of the agency's five stated goals in its 2014 strategic plan--which used the phrase "climate change" more than 40 times.
Dr. Rachel Cleetus, climate policy manager with the Union of Concerned Scientists, called the EPA's scrubbing of climate change from its report "stunning," and argued that it was no accident.
"Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time and it doesn't even appear in the strategic plan for this agency," Cleetus said. "This wasn't an oversight, this is a deliberate strategy by this administration."
Since his inauguration--and particularly since his nomination of oil and gas industry favorite Scott Pruitt to head the EPA--Trump has moved quickly to dismantle even the more modest climate achievements of his predecessor. According to a New York Times analysis, 25 environmental rules have been successfully axed, and at least 19 are currently being rolled back.
"Regulations have often been reversed as a direct response to petitions from oil, coal, and gas companies and other industry groups," the Times notes. "Scott Pruitt...has met almost daily with industry executives and lobbyists."
Despite the fact that the EPA's new "strategic plan" declares that the agency's number one priority is "to provide Americans with clean air, land, and water," many of the agency's moves have taken precisely the opposite track.
As Common Dreams reported, the Trump administration has just this week moved to scrap the Clean Power Plan and intensified its "war on wind and solar" by suggesting that federal subsides for these sources of renewable energy should be eliminated.
At the same time, notes Oil Change International's Janet Redman, Trump is "using our taxpayer dollars to promote dangerous new fossil fuel development," placing the nation's air and water quality at serious risk.