Kara Bemis <kara.bemis@gmail.com>	10:15 AM (2 minutes ago)
to me

This major election is two weeks away, which is shocking.  Covid and the election have been dominating news and media, but it still seems as if the election is coming up soon, which means that time is running out to to self educate, educate others, and prepare to be a well informed voter. This blog has a primary focus on yoga but also on environmentalism.  Here are some quick resources on the candidates’ platforms on the environment and climate change.

Trump’s Horrendous Record on the Environment

The below outlined “successes” come directly from Trump’s campaign website.  Nowhere does he mention science, climate change, nor protecting the environment.  In fact, Trump has been known to be a climate change denier who brushes off the science, for example when speaking to Governor Newsome and other officials of California about the unprecedented wildfires in his state and pressed about climate change, Trump said, “It will start getting cooler. You just watch. It will. I don’t think science knows actually.”

The Trump administration has rolled back around 100 environmental protection regulations in favor of corporations and profits.  The rollbacks have taken place since his four year term began and, “dismantled major climate policies and rolled back many more rules governing clean air, water, wildlife and toxic chemicals. Over four years in office, the Trump administration has dismantled major climate policies and rolled back many more rules governing clean air, water, wildlife and toxic chemicals.”
Some of the rollbacks include such jaw-droppingly disgusting changes as 

• removing protection from over half of all of the wetlands in the country, 
• removing Obama-era restrictions on emissions from vehicles and power plants, 
• opening drilling to more protected areas in the US, including:
• Cutting Bears Ears national monument by 85% and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monument by almost half for energy exploration.
• Pulling the US out of the Paris Climate Accord, the only country in the world to not sign the agreement to work together to reduce green house gasses and aids countries in facing the inevitable results of an ever warming planet. 

The list of course could go on regarding how dangerous this administration is for the entire population of the US as well as the world.  Pollution and increasingly strong and dangerous natural disasters know no borders, therefore rollbacks of regulations that protect the earth the human and natural populations on the earth do not only negatively affect the citizens of the US, but also the entire world population.  As the “leader of the world” you would think that the United States would be leading the way in the advancement of renewable energy instead of promoting the use of oil, gas, and coal.  There lies opportunity in our drastic state.

Biden’s Climate Plan

The massive font on Biden’s campaign site says almost all that needs to be said to win anyone’s vote who has the remotest admiration for nature and the environment, for anyone who enjoys breathing clean air and drinking clean water.  For anyone with a conscience, really.

THE BIDEN PLAN FOR A CLEAN ENERGY REVOLUTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

First of all Biden says that he will put the US back into the Paris Climate Agreement.  Biden was VP when then President Barack Obama was key in formulating the agreement.  The US has until the end of this year to pull out if Trump is re-elected.  If we were to pull out of the agreement we would be the only country to do so, three years ago the remaining two countries who had not signed on – Nicaragua & Syria, signed the agreement leaving the US standing alone as the sole laughable country not taking climate change seriously even though the US is a major emitter.

Unlike Trump’s heinous remarks to leaders of California facing deadly wildfires, Joe Biden understands that the effects of climate change are a threat to all of us: wildfires in the west, increase numbers and strength of hurricanes, dangers to citizen’s health via pollution and exposure to dangerous chemicals (primarily affecting people of color and our poorest populations hence his bold outline of climate justice.)

Joe Biden has outlined a goal of net zero emissions and 100% renewable energy throughout the country by 2050.  That is a big deal, and it is something that many developed (and developing) nations and regions are attempting so if the US does not commit resources into moving forward with renewables instead of coal and carbon then we will be left behind as other nations eclipse us.  

It is a very well known fact that climate change is real and that human beings have played a major part in our warming climate.  There are of course those that choose to disregard science and do not believe in it, but climate change is not something that you believe in, it is a fact in the same way that gravity pulls items to the earth.  Those people who deny the facts have a right to their beliefs, but they should not be in power.

A few more items on Biden’s Climate Plan are to invest heavily in steering the country towards his goal of clean energy and carbon mitigation which he proposes to pay for by using the money earned by rolling back the Trump tax incentives that benefitted corporations, improve building standards in government buildings and set up incentives for homeowners to improve their homes’ efficiency which in turn will reduce heating and cooling costs, reduce emissions in household appliances/airlines/vehicles/etc., and increase availability of electric charging stations and tax incentives to purchase electric vehicles. 

The Biden Climate Plan is so extensive that it would be ridiculous to outline more here.  To sum up, there is absolutely no comparison between our two candidates.  If you are an American citizen still pondering who to cast your vote for in this election and you also would like your children, grandchildren, and all future generations to inherit a safe and beautiful world then the choice is clear.  

Vote Biden this election and do some research for which candidate is strongest in their plan to combat climate change in your local elections.