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I know
that everyone was sick and tired of the media coverage leading up to the
presidential election, so I thought I’d add a bit more discussion to the
mix. Seriously though, I thought I’d
take a look at what President Obama’s second term has in store for
environmental policy. Interestingly,
climate change was not mentioned once in the three presidential debates—the first
time that has happened since 1984.
President Obama, however, did mention climate change in his acceptance speech, in which he stated: "We
want our children to live in an America that isn't burdened by debt, that isn't
weakened by inequality, that isn't threatened by the destructive power of a
warming planet.”
On
November 7, 2012, a day after President Obama was reelected, Audubon Magazine published the president’s answers to ten questions on the environment. In
the Audubon interview, President Obama called climate change "one of
the biggest issues of this generation.” Although
most of the article dealt with what the president has done in his first term to
address climate change, he did address some of his future plans. The
president proposes increasing limits on new fossil-fuel-fired power plants,
limiting greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles, investing in renewable
energy, and reaching emission limit agreements with other countries.
One area where President Obama
conflicts with environmentalists is on drilling in the Arctic. The president believes that drilling in the
Arctic must be a part of America’s “all-of-the-above energy strategy.” He would, however, prevent drilling in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge. Another
potential source of conflict with environmentalists is the Keystone oil pipeline. The president’s administration
is conducting a thorough assessment of the pluses and minuses of the proposed
pipeline, while the Audubon interviewer stated that the pipeline “would
transport what some consider to be the dirtiest oil in the world and cause
destruction of boreal forest.”
The president does not believe
that we have to choose between a clean environment and a thriving economy. He believes that clean energy
investment will lead to a $2.3 trillion global market. Industry groups, however, disagree. Industry
groups fear that increased regulation of coal and other fossil fuels will hurt
the economy and raise prices for consumers.
For more energy industry perspective, please click here.
If you have questions about how
new proposals, regulations, or laws will impact you or your business, please
contact an environmental attorney.
