What Biden has done is to cut the issuance of drilling leases to the minimum required by law, pass the Inflation Reduction Act, enact a regulation to force vehicle electrification, and similarly force fossil fuels out of most power plants.
What Biden has not done: stop issuing drilling permits or impose export restrictions on fossil fuels. The former has some serious limits because of how the courts treat the right to drill as a property right once you hold a drilling lease, and the latter is simply untested.
- sin_free_for_00_days ( @sin_free_for_00_days@sopuli.xyz ) 132•1 year ago
Biden literally just cancelled oil and gas leases less than a week ago. I agree he hasn’t done enough, but there is some validity to the old statement that perfection is often the enemy of good.
- Nonameuser678 ( @Nonameuser678@aussie.zone ) 6•1 year ago
Our left wing party is still opening new coal and gas mines so be thankful for whatever progress you get I say.
- cobra89 ( @cobra89@beehaw.org ) 4•1 year ago
Even by your linked article’s admission, that was kind of inconsequential:
The 2017 GOP tax bill opened a small part of the pristine wildlife refuge for drilling, a measure championed by Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican. But it was never developed or drilled – or came close to doing so. Haaland suspended the leases in June 2021, and some major oil companies, including Chevron, canceled their leases in the area the following year.
However, the 2017 tax law mandates leasing in ANWR, meaning the Biden administration will have to launch a new leasing process and hold another lease sale by the end of 2024, albeit likely with tighter environmental provisions.
So the companies had the permits for 4 years and never did anything with them, to the point where Chevron cancelled their own leases. And the leases will be auctioned off again next year.
Meanwhile the Biden administration is granting applications for permits to drill on public and trial lands at a pace faster than the Trump administration at the same point. From the start of their administrations through March 27, Biden approved 7,118 permits and Trump 7,051, The Washington Post reported.
About the permit approvals, the Bureau of Land Management has said the bureau has taken a “balanced approach to energy development and management of our nation’s public lands.”
So yeah, while I think Biden is the most progressive president since FDR, his record on oil drilling isn’t so great.
Edit: fix the order of some quotes.
- Franzia ( @Franzia@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) 2•1 year ago
Seriously he couldn’t pass the Build Back Better plan but then the Inflation Reduction Act provides a potentially unlimited amount of incentives/subsidies for green energy.
Painting him as “just a moderate” on this issue is some centrist level bullshit, OP. He’s clearly giving oil, gas, and military convenient wins so they don’t ruin the world before the next US election. Yes, the oil barons have more political power than a sifnificant amount of voters.
- WtfEvenIsExistence ( @WtfEvenIsExistence@sopuli.xyz ) English34•1 year ago
We can stop global warming if we use nuclear winter!
Checkmate, Scientists! 🤓
I don’t think that’s ever been in serious doubt; the same simulation mechanisms used to produce climate modeling were used to figure out that nuclear winter is an issue in the first place. It’s just that most people would prefer to address global warming without mass murder.
- spaduf ( @spaduf@slrpnk.net ) 2•1 year ago
There is, of course, the possibility of geoengineering with sulfur dioxide. Sort of a nuclear winter without the nuclear. It’s the same mechanism by which nuclear would and volcanoes do cause climate cooling. Not very safe but it may be in our emergency bag of tricks.
- I_Has_A_Hat ( @I_Has_A_Hat@lemmy.ml ) 2•1 year ago
Wasn’t there a proposal to do something similar by using ships to blast saltwater into the air? All the cloud coverage and reflected sunlight, none of the acid rain.
- spaduf ( @spaduf@slrpnk.net ) 1•1 year ago
I think that’s actually relatively low-risk to do as well (as far as experimental geoengineering goes). A significant portion of the warming in the North Atlantic has been attributed to lack of sulfur emissions due to changes in requirements for container ship fuels. Should be able to get a similar effect with just water with the effects being understood well in advance.
- Paul de Ferney ( @makegeneve@fosstodon.org ) 2•1 year ago
@spaduf @I_Has_A_Hat I’d be much more confident in this if ANY government decided to spend money on it. Most of them won’t spend money on bike lanes!
- Fat Tony ( @FatTony@lemm.ee ) 1•1 year ago
Nuclear winter is about as likely as a solution to global warming though.
- Defiant ( @Defiant@lemmy.cafe ) English28•1 year ago
We just have to learn the hard way don’t we?
Or we can work to stop things that are existential crises.
- Four_lights77 ( @Four_lights77@lemm.ee ) English6•1 year ago
As an elementary school teacher, “the hard way” is the overwhelming choice of kids. I don’t think it changes that much when they grow into adults.
- nxdefiant ( @nxdefiant@startrek.website ) 16•1 year ago
The sun is a nuclear furnace. Climate change IS nuclear war!
(we should nuke the sun)
- hoodlem ( @hoodlem@hoodlem.me ) English6•1 year ago
Gotta nuke something
- Echo71Niner ( @Echo71Niner@lemm.ee ) 2•1 year ago
we should nuke the sun
ok, how
- Honytawk ( @Honytawk@lemmy.zip ) 4•1 year ago
By tying nukes to rockets and sending them to the sun, duh!
If we go by night, we will even be able to see the explosion from Earth!
- Echo71Niner ( @Echo71Niner@lemm.ee ) 1•1 year ago
lol
- remotelove ( @remotelove@lemmy.ca ) 4•1 year ago
Use a bigger star.
- MonkderZweite ( @MonkderZweite@feddit.ch ) 10•1 year ago
Then finally start making the companies that make a win out of it pay more taxes!! Like, CO² taxes, import/export taxes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_oil_and_gas_companies_by_revenue
- homesnatch ( @homesnatch@lemm.ee ) 1•1 year ago
That’s something that requires an act of Congress rather than Biden… And with the current House makeup, extremely unlikely.
- MonkderZweite ( @MonkderZweite@feddit.ch ) 1•1 year ago
Ok, i’m not american, so thanks. Still, they are supposed to be leaders but are self-centered like children. They should go to kindergarten again, to learn compromise.
- iAmTheTot ( @iAmTheTot@kbin.social ) 10•1 year ago
Climate change is scary, but scarier than nuclear war? I dunno, man.
IMHO this mostly tells us that Biden is talking about climate policy with the people around him. That’s enough to be a big deal.
- Cethin ( @Cethin@lemmy.zip ) English3•1 year ago
Yeah, when all the Republicans in the last debate said it wasn’t real, or whatever words were used, this is a clear difference on what’s likely the most important issue for most voters.
Sadly a large chunk of voters don’t consider climate to be their top issue
- GreenMario ( @GreenMario@lemm.ee ) 10•1 year ago
Nuclear war is quick.
Climate change is slow.
Gimme the quick flash over the boiling frog deal Everytime.
- Chetzemoka ( @Chetzemoka@kbin.social ) 5•1 year ago
If you’re lucky enough to be one of the minimal handful who actually die in the quick flash. More likely you’ll be one of the multitudes poisoned by radioactive fallout or starved by nuclear winter.
It’s not better.
- kitonthenet ( @kitonthenet@kbin.social ) 3•1 year ago
No siree, I live next to a state capitol, I’ll be just fine
- Chetzemoka ( @Chetzemoka@kbin.social ) 4•1 year ago
I just want one of those Hawaii-style text message warnings, so I can start driving toward Boston asap
- kitonthenet ( @kitonthenet@kbin.social ) 4•1 year ago
now you’re getting it
- GreenMario ( @GreenMario@lemm.ee ) 2•1 year ago
I live near silos.
I’m getting vaporized. Hells yeah.
- Rapidcreek ( @Rapidcreek@reddthat.com ) 7•1 year ago
IDK, climate-fueled illnesses — tied to hotter temperatures, and swifter passage of pathogens and toxins. Continuing pandemics would be no treat.
I like how no one here mentioned the obvious fact that climate change disasters will only make world powers more willing to start a nuclear war. Just look at North Korea, what will happen when they have a huge famine or flood or fire or whatever and even the Kims can’t fill their bellies, what then?
- doggle ( @doggle@lemmy.dbzer0.com ) 1•1 year ago
In that it is definitely happening and will be equally destructive if steps aren’t taken to prevent it, albeit over a longer timeframe.
- query ( @query@lemm.ee ) 9•1 year ago
Of course. Climate change is happening, and will keep getting worse until all the biggest countries agree to do and actually go through with doing something substantial about it (or to fully isolate the economies of those that refuse). Nuclear war is just an idea.
It’s doubtful curbing CO2 output will put a stop to it now. We’re already seeing the beginnings of feedback loops kicking in, and with them runaway climate collapse.
We’ve got pretty clear evidence that getting emissions to zero is enough to stop the increase in average surface temperature.
- query ( @query@lemm.ee ) 4•1 year ago
Right, we need net zero emissions, no further destruction of nature, and then we can start doing something to undo what we’ve already done.
- GreatGrapeApe ( @GreatGrapeApe@reddthat.com ) 1•1 year ago
We need most of the West and the upper classes of China to reduce their consumption of meat and animal products substantially.
- SeaJ ( @SeaJ@lemm.ee ) 8•1 year ago
The next 10 or 20 years? I just read an article that hit it already and will likely do it consistently over the next several years. The next 10-20 will likely few closer to a 3.6°F (2°C) rise.
Year-to-year surface temperatures vary significantly. Look at a graph like this:
and it’s clear that we could easily have a string of years below this year’s temperature
- SeaJ ( @SeaJ@lemm.ee ) 2•1 year ago
We could but the current El Niño is supposed to be pretty significant. We also have significantly less sulfur oxide being spewed by international shipping which has a large cooling effect on the oceans. It is good that we cut down on that pollution and there are things we can replace it with that will have similar effects and are less damaging but there is currently nothing planned that would essentially replace that coming effect.
While you are correct that there is a good amount of variability in the temperature, I think it is just as likely that it will be variability the other way.
- frezik ( @frezik@midwest.social ) 1•1 year ago
I think I know the one you’re talking about, and the headline is somewhat misleading. This comes with the disclaimer that I don’t want to downplay the severity of any of this, but it’s important to have the right context.
What’s happened is that we’ve had two months in a row with extreme temperatures. Those alone peak above +1.5C. It had been this high before, back in 2016. However, we’re not going to have an average of +1.5C of extra warming this year, or in the next few years.
It’s still bad, just not that bad.
- 4am ( @4am@lemm.ee ) English7•1 year ago
Didn’t we just hit 1.5C today?
We’re still some years from hitting an ongoing sustained average of 1.5°C above what it was in the late 1800s. That’s what people mostly talking about when they say 1.5°C
- YⓄ乙 ( @yoz@aussie.zone ) English4•1 year ago
Let’s burn some more fossil fuels!! Whoo hoo,!! I doubt developing countries will stop it as their reasoning is absolutely correct. Developed countries already polluted the environment during the industrial stage and now they are in better position so they shouldn’t be the one lecturing about climate change. Only way to overcome this is by supporting each other financially but as we know human beings are greedy AF so let it burrrrnnnnnn!!
The technological landscape that developing countries have today is very different from what it was a century ago. Wind and solar power are cheap in a way that they weren’t then, so there’s the possibility of a green industrialization, where they don’t have to go down the road the US and Europe and China did.
- YⓄ乙 ( @yoz@aussie.zone ) English1•1 year ago
Yeah naa…there’s a reason coal is being used and i’ll let you do your research before spilling BS.
- cobra89 ( @cobra89@beehaw.org ) 1•1 year ago
The issue is mostly availability and infrastructure. Wind and solar only produce energy when there’s wind and solar. However new renewable energy is cheaper to produce but is inconsistent and not as reliable as a coal burning plant.
You can do something like Australia did with their huge Tesla battery to store the renewables but that’s not very economically feasible for developing nations, but they should still be building out new renewables for energy and filling the gaps with fossil fuels instead of just sticking with fossil fuels entirely.
- blazera ( @blazera@kbin.social ) 3•1 year ago
Ive seen fuck all investment in solar where I’m at. Id really like to contribute labor to it, but there’s nothing.
A lot has been happening in the southwest US, including Texas.
- psyspoop ( @psyspoop@kbin.social ) 3•1 year ago
Where I’m at, we’re actually getting a decent amount of solar, but unfortunately the power district is building the solar fields over some remnant tallgrass prairie, probably since it’s cheaper than buying agricultural or residential land. This sucks since we’ve destroyed 98% of all the tallgrass prairie in the US, which makes it one of the most endangered biomes in the world, which is extra sucky since tallgrass prairie is one the most effective biomes at sequestering carbon, much more than even forests/woodlands.
- exohuman ( @exohuman@programming.dev ) 3•1 year ago
Here in the rural Midwest there is a huge investment in wind turbines. They are everywhere you look. I think what renewable is popular depends on your region.
There are specific areas where nothing is happening. For example, Alberta has a moratorium on renewables in order to benefit the local fossil fuels industry.
- cobra89 ( @cobra89@beehaw.org ) 3•1 year ago
Lol that is the most Alberta thing I’ve ever heard.
- blazera ( @blazera@kbin.social ) 1•1 year ago
Iowa had the most wind turbines in the US like…before Obama was even president I believe. But I wouldnt know what’s been invested there federally since Biden took over, because I cant find any info on where those investments are going.
- winterwulf ( @winterwulf@lemm.ee ) 1•1 year ago
And what he is doing to prevent it? Did the US decided to FINALLY SIGN THE FUCKING KYOTO PROTOCOL?
As I originally posted:
What Biden has done is to cut the issuance of drilling leases to the minimum required by law, pass the Inflation Reduction Act, enact a regulation to force vehicle electrification, and similarly force fossil fuels out of most power plants.
What Biden has not done: stop issuing drilling permits or impose export restrictions on fossil fuels. The former has some serious limits because of how the courts treat the right to drill as a property right once you hold a drilling lease, and the latter is simply untested.