The Fate of the Future: Trump’s Environmental Policies
2024 was the hottest year recorded in history. For the first time, the Earth exceeded the 1.5 degree Celsius warming limit determined by the Paris Agreement, an international treaty on climate change. The rapid rate of warming is partially due to excessive release of greenhouse gases, which are caused from burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and natural gas. Weather disasters, biodiversity loss, and increased hardships are also among the consequences of climate change. The effects of these non-renewable sources of energy on climate change are irreversible, and without policy aimed towards the use of renewable sources of energy, the Earth will continue to warm at rapid rates.
Since President Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20th, 2025, his administration has enforced several executive orders which threaten to reverse previous policies implemented by previous administrations. Already, the second Trump administration has withdrawn from the World Health Organization, which is a global agency responsible for monitoring public health. The administration has also pulled out of the Paris Agreement, an international treaty on climate change, which has 195 signatories. There are several other executive orders which President Trump and his second administration have implemented, threatening the future of the planet, as well as the job force. In 2021, former President Joe Biden signed a memorandum which entailed, “Restoring trust in government through science and integrity and evidence-based policy making” (Thomas and Schwarber 2021). The goal of this memorandum was to protect scientists from political interference with scientific research, more specifically, environmental research. The United States ranks second in greenhouse gas emissions globally, however, the Biden administration intended to push the United States towards a “net-zero economy” by 2050 (White House 2021). Protection of scientific research and encouraging renewable sources of energy would accomplish a more environmentally friendly and sustainable future. President Trump has, unfortunately, reversed the memorandum.
In an attempt to discredit scientific research which proves the existence and severity of climate change, President Trump’s second administration continues to propose reliance on non-renewable sources of energy. The White House website details the President’s declaration of a national energy emergency. Signed on January 20th, the executive order details that “the integrity and expansion of our Nation’s energy infrastructure—from coast to coast—is an immediate and pressing priority for the protection of the United States’ national and economic security” (The White House 2025). This executive order is encouraging the “potential to use its unrealized energy resources domestically, and to sell to international allies and partners a reliable, diversified, and affordable supply of energy” as a means for economic and job growth (The White House 2025). In short, this order will give large oil and gas companies free range to drill, mine, and sell at rapid rates, directly opposing the actions of former President Biden.
Additionally, the second Trump administration initiated the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to drastically reduce federal spending. Under Amy Gleason and Elon Musk’s leadership, DOGE is responsible for a number of federal job losses under the new administration thus far, cutting agency funding which dedicated time and effort to research (Wong 2025). The department claims to have “saved” an estimated $105 billion in a “combination of asset sales, contract/lease cancellations and renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletion, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings, and workforce reductions” (DOGE Website 2025). Reportedly, these efforts have saved an estimated $652.17 per taxpayer. But, at what cost?
Journalists are finding inaccuracies in the federal savings reduction numbers on the DOGE website, and describing the detrimental impacts of these massive cuts in government spending. Soo Rin Kim and Will Steakin from ABC News write that “it's unclear if the revision to the contract's value on DOGE's website, from $8 billion to $8 million, affects DOGE's claim of $55 billion saved. As originally listed, the $8 billion accounted for more than half of the savings DOGE claimed through the termination of contracts” (Kim and Steakin 2025).
Furthermore, DOGE’s “savings” put the quality, safety, and future of national parks at risk. According to Matthew Daley, a reporter for AP News, “Park advocates say the permanent staff cuts will leave hundreds of national parks—including some of the most well-known and most heavily visited sites—understaffed and facing tough decisions about operating hours, public safety and resource protection” (Daley 2025). Not only do the cuts in funding towards national park conservation pose a threat to the quality of the parks, but they also hinder the ability for visitors to enjoy the parks safely. Kristen Brengel, senior vice president of government affairs at an advocacy group called National Parks Conservation Association, said, “Fewer staff means shorter visitor center hours, delayed openings and closed campgrounds” (Daley 2025).
The second Trump administration has made unnecessary cuts towards the preservation of the planet, completely disregarding the climate-forward goals which determine the future of the planet. The media has been unable to handle the sheer amount of executive orders, claims, and actions made by the president. Journalists, economists, and experts are struggling to identify the Trump administration’s logic and practices, but many of them recognize a clear goal, which is to eradicate the environment for economic gain. Logging, drilling, and emitting will continue to be the downfall of the sustainability of the United States under Trump’s administration, and the future of environmental justice will be soiled by the current policies being implemented.
References
Borenstein, Seth. 2025. “Earth breaks yearly heat record and lurches past dangerous warming threshold.” AP News, (January). https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-warming-hot-record-2024-disasters-12f899f071fcdbd051ad49a872611e92.
White House. 2021. “FACT SHEET: President Biden Takes Executive Actions to Tackle the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, Create Jobs, and Restore Scientific Integrity Across Federal Government.” The White House. https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/27/fact-sheet-president-biden-takes-executive-actions-to-tackle-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad-create-jobs-and-restore-scientific-integrity-across-federal-government/.
White House. 2025. “DECLARING A NATIONAL ENERGY EMERGENCY.” White House. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency/.
Noor, Dharna, and Gabrielle Canon. 2025. “This article is more than 1 month old ‘Cruel and thoughtless’: Trump fires hundreds at US climate agency Noaa.” The Guardian, (February). https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/27/trump-noaa-cuts-climate.
DOGE. n.d. Department of Government Efficiency. https://doge.gov/savings.
Wong, Scott. 2025. “Lawmakers fear DOGE cuts will drive away next generation of federal workers.” NBC News, (March). https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/lawmakers-fear-doge-cuts-will-drive-away-generation-federal-workers-rcna197085.
Daley, Matthew. 2025. “Trump’s firing of 1,000 national park workers raises concerns about maintenance and operating hours.” AP News, (February). https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-park-firings-doge-grand-teton-baedee0a748a6374eafb6f95aac5dadc.