The Biden administration promised environmental rollbacks on day one, and the administration did not disappoint. On his first day in office, President Biden signed 17 executive orders on a broad range of issues including climate change.
Here are the 3 major environmental rollbacks that occurred on President Biden’s First day in office.
Note: There were various other rollbacks like automobile fuel standards, so be sure to check out a full breakdown of the executive orders.
1. Rejoining the Paris Accord
The most well-known and impactful change was the United States asking to rejoin the Paris Accord. This will begin a short process that will allow the nation to rejoin the agreement with nearly 200 other nations.
This will put the United States in a position to help lead other nations to go green as it begins the process itself.
2. Revoke the Keystone XL Pipeline Permit
The Keystone XL pipeline was held up in court for years, but the previous administration granted the permit. The administration was quick to overturn this and construction on the pipeline will halt.
This is a serious blow to the oil industry because transporting the oil around the country is integral to the industry.
3. Temporarily Halting Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
One of the most controversial decisions has been allowing oil companies to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. While that has ended in failure because no oil company showed up for the auctions, the possibility remained.
However, a temporary halt is in effect. This will prevent any drilling in the refuge for some time.
Green Energy Is the Future Of America
One thing that these executive orders have made abundantly clear, is that there is no room for oil in America’s future. The new administration is committed to pursuing green energy sources and transitioning our electric grid to zero carbon emissions.
However, that plan will take some time.
The current plan is to prepare the nation for the change and set it up to reach that goal by 2035.
I have to say, I am impressed with what they have done so far. Re-joining the Paris accord was an easy decision. However, lets see what the administration continues to do to make sure the nation is making right decisions.