It May Not Seem Like It Now, But A Better World is Possible
Since day one in office, President Trump has done everything in his power to upend environmental justice and climate progress. He has created a false “ national emergency ” to justify the expansion of dirty fossil fuels and mining. He has withdrawn from the Paris Climate Agreement. He has slowed the development of renewable energy infrastructure. He has prioritized polluters over people and corporations over communities on all fronts. Let’s dive into a couple of the ways this administration has already used environmental policy to shrink democratic participation, strip power from people, and transfer wealth from the many to the few.
“One Big Ugly Bill” Act
Trump and Republicans in Congress already passed a massive budget bill. Trump dubbed it the “ One Big Beautiful Bill Act ,” but it’s anything but beautiful. The bill guts bedrock environmental protections, reverses progress toward environmental justice for frontline communities, and paves the way for massive handouts to oil, gas, and mining companies.
The environmental consequences of the bill are far-reaching. It will speed up permitting for polluting projects across agencies, limit the ability of citizens to levy challenges against projects, and expand oil, gas, and mining extraction on federal lands and waters. It represents the “largest transfer of wealth from working-class Americans to the ultrawealthy in the nation’s history” ( Center for American Progress ).
Rolling Back Environmental Protection
Earlier this year, the Administration rolled back major rules implementing the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). This act is the fundamental law guiding public participation in our Government’s permitting decisions. NEPA ensures that communities are warned if, for example, an LNG (liquified methane gas) export terminal plans to build upon their fishing grounds. It sets out ways for the public to learn and provide information and feedback on major projects that could disrupt or destroy their environments.
But Trump and his Big Oil buddies took NEPA oversight away from the Center for Environmental Quality (where it was centralized and standardized) to let every individual agency choose their own review process . This deregulatory move may have the opposite of its intended effect. Without clear rules, agencies may make more errors; and Courts reviewing NEPA decisions may be less deferential to those agency errors without the standardization CEQ’s rules once provided. The Big Ugly Bill took further steps to strip this essential piece of legislation by creating a pay-to-play permitting scheme letting polluters assert more control over evaluating their preferred project alternatives and project impacts. This, after the previous Congress and Biden administration already weakened NEPA with the 2023 Fiscal Responsibility Act.
As a result, environmental reviews for major infrastructure, like LNG export terminals and pipelines, are now shorter in time and narrower in scope. They are less likely to include cumulative impacts, like climate change or environmental justice considerations. The process now strips opportunities for democratic participation. Public comment periods are shorter, and fewer, with some opportunities eliminated.
Processes like NEPA comment periods allow residents to stand up and speak out about what happens in their communities. They give people fundamental tools to advocate for themselves and protect their homes. Public hearings and comment periods are not perfect. But they are how the public can shape better government decisions over project alternatives that avoid, reduce, or mitigate harms. Shrinking and stripping down the NEPA process further disempowers communities who bear the brunt of extractive industries.
The World We Want to See
In a democracy, we create the world we want to see. Stripping public participation and creating tax breaks for billionaires is one of the many ways Trump and Republicans in Congress are rapidly eroding our country’s democratic foundation. Without democracy, any attempt to curb global warming will come at the cost of human rights, especially for communities of color and immigrant, Indigenous, disabled, queer, and other communities eco-fascists decide are unworthy.
No longer can we afford to compromise on the bold solutions that are the only remaining path to alleviating the worst of the climate crisis and saving what is left of our biodiversity.
The road to radical, transformative policy change is urgent, yet long. In the meantime, there are ways we can take action right now. As citizen activists we can all:
Call your members of Congress — all the time! Encourage them to support the introduction of the the Environmental Justice for All Act.
Leverage what remains of the NEPA! Alongside members of your own community, contact NEPA project leads before scoping begins to receive proper notice of applicable comment and/or consultation periods.
Local work matters! Local, state, and Tribal governments all can influence NEPA outcomes. Consider contacting your applicable local, state, or Tribal elected and appointed officials to advocate for better project outcomes and against bad projects. Uplift local and state-level climate action. Celebrate small wins, and focus on where you can make an impact.
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The post It May Not Seem Like It Now, But A Better World is Possible appeared first on Earthworks .
