Tim Mohin: Flurry of US Climate Actions Unnoticed by Voters
The US has issued a raft of new climate policies in recent months as the Biden administration attempts to shield progress against any future government backtracking.
This week alone, the EPA finalized a rule that will increase methane reporting and the proliferation of methane-detecting equipment for more accurate reporting. Reducing methane emissions is a key part of the Biden administration’s climate action plan, and the update to the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program will help achieve this goal. EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said, “As we implement the historic climate programs under President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, EPA is applying the latest tools, cutting-edge technology, and expertise to track and measure methane emissions from the oil and gas industry.”
Also, this week, President Biden announced new subsidies to reduce emissions from air travel. To access the tax credits, companies need to prove that their sustainable aviation fuel has 50% less emissions than jet fuel.
These policies are the latest in a long list of climate actions, including the Inflation Reduction Act, EPA rules to phase out coal-fired power generation by 2039, rejoining international climate agreements (e.g., the Paris Agreement and the Global Methane Pledge), and strict new limits on vehicle emissions. All told, the Administration has approved $1.6 trillion in climate and infrastructure spending. However, only 17% has been spent so far.
Voters Unaware of Biden’s Climate Wins
Source: Politico
Related Article: Tim Mohin: Europe’s Green Deal Finalized
Despite presiding over the most progressive period ever for climate policy in the US, most voters remain unaware of Biden’s environmental progress, and those who know about it don’t think it is working.
Source: Politico
A recent poll from CBS News/YouGov found that more than half of people under 30 knew nothing at all (28%) or very little (31%) about Biden’s climate policies. A similar Politico poll found that although the majority of people were aware of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), less than a quarter of them think the IRA has impacted them positively, and only 25% think it has brought more jobs to their community.
Biden is putting these environmental achievements at the center of his re-election campaign to hopefully galvanize youth voters, but so far, they seem to be falling on deaf ears.
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