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Michael Brune: Withdrawal from Paris Agreement will be disastrous

Alexandra Wimley/Post-Gazette

Michael Brune: Withdrawal from Paris Agreement will be disastrous

The president's environmental policy is an embarrassment

When I heard that Donald Trump would tout his plan to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord — in Pittsburgh, no less — my first thought was: “Didn’t he get it wrong enough the first time?”

It was in Pittsburgh, of course, that Mr. Trump first declared his intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement. Despite Mr. Trump's rhetoric about representing "Pittsburgh, not Paris," the mayor of Pittsburgh has pledged to power the city with 100% renewable energy by 2035, as have 221 other mayors across the country. Pennsylvania, the battleground state Mr. Trump is trying to win with his pro-fracking, pro-pollution rhetoric, just joined the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which will cut pollution while saving state residents money.

Mr. Trump’s first announcement to withdraw was on June 2017, a year and a half before any country could actually begin the process of leaving the agreement. A formal withdrawal starts the clock toward an actual exit on Nov. 4, 2020 (the day after a certain national election).

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At that point, the United States would have the dubious distinction of being the only nation in the world that is not part of the Paris Agreement. The historic agreement represents humanity's best shot at keeping global warming below catastrophic levels, which means that it’s also our best shot at avoiding drought, food shortages, mass migration, mass extinctions and deadly storms.

But withdrawing from the Paris Agreement doesn’t just mean more natural disasters in the future. It means stifling economic growth and harming workers right now. Solar panel installers and wind turbine technicians are the fastest-growing occupations, and they pay above-market wages. A recent study from University College London found that America's green economy employs about 9.5 million people, and generates $1.31 trillion of revenue annually, or about 7% of GDP.

Mr. Trump ran on the promise to bring prosperity back to struggling communities. But by attacking the new sustainable economy, he is instead hurting workers and their families. Ironically, his refusal to grow the green economy is, in fact, a betrayal of the shrinking number of people he calls his base.

Nearly 70% of Americans across geographic, demographic and political lines support the Paris Agreement. Nearly 4,000 businesses, universities, cities and states have declared that they are “still in” and committed to meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement. It’s clear that this country embraces a future of good jobs, clean air and water, and a safe climate.

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Instead, like the crooked businessman he is, Mr. Trump has offered the American people a series of terrible deals. He asks communities to choose between new jobs and exposure to the toxins and carcinogens that accompany oil and gas projects. While bragging that our drinking water and air have never been cleaner, he announces rollbacks of bedrock protections for clean water and air. He has showered fossil fuel interests with regulatory giveaways and taken away millions of acres of American public lands. And, unsurprisingly, under his watch we’ve seen greenhouse gas emissions rising at the highest rate in almost 10 years.

The most important thing to remember each time a new outrageous Trump policy is announced? Come 2020, we have an opportunity to put this country on the right course environmentally and economically. That’s especially true for the Paris Agreement. If a new president chooses to do so, the United States can be back in the Paris Agreement within 30 days. All of the Democratic front-runners have pledged to do exactly that.

As we approach 2020, let’s remember what’s at stake. When voters make their choices, they should ask themselves: Do I want to live in an America with a toxic, spluttering economy — that is to say, the America Mr. Trump is offering? Or do I want a fair economy that works for everyone, that treats our air, water, forests and climate as resources to be protected and not exploited?

We all know Mr. Trump isn’t exactly a man of his word. But he did say one thing that I believe is true, one which 4 million Sierra Club supporters will work to guarantee: “You’ll never have another president like me.”

Michael Brune is the executive director of the environmental organization the Sierra Club.

First Published: October 29, 2019, 4:00 a.m.

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