Skip to Content
Climate change and energy

Trump’s rollbacks could add half an EU’s worth of climate pollution by 2035

Unraveling rules covering vehicle emissions, methane, and other greenhouse gases could add up to nearly 2 billion extra tons of carbon dioxide.
September 17, 2020
Donald Trump at podium
Dennis Van Tine/STAR MAX/IPx

US President Donald Trump has successfully moved the nation backwards on climate change, even as the world grapples with increasingly devastating fires, heat waves and droughts.

His rollbacks of major environmental policies, should they survive legal challenges and subsequent administrations, could pump the equivalent of 1.8 billion additional metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by 2035, according to a new Rhodium Group analysis. That’s a little more than Russia’s total annual fossil-fuel emissions, or more than half the European Union’s in recent years.

Those increased greenhouse-gas emissions would come from the unraveling of regulations, mostly implemented under President Barack Obama, in several key areas:

  • Efforts to roll back federal vehicle emissions standards and revoke California’s ability to set stricter rules could together add more than 1 billion tons of carbon dioxide over the next 15 years.
  • The weakening of Environmental Protection Agency rules requiring oil and gas companies to prevent leaks of highly potent methane could contribute the equivalent of nearly 600 billion tons of carbon dioxide over that time.
  • The easing of regulations covering hydrofluorocarbons, especially powerful greenhouse gases used in refrigeration and air conditioning, could add 165 tons.
  • Finally, the EPA’s delayed enforcement of rules designed to reduce methane pollution from landfills could increase emissions by 46 million tons.

Those are just some of the major changes. The actual added climate pollution resulting from the Trump administration’s actions is almost certainly far larger.

After all, he and his appointees have reversed or defanged dozens of other environmental rules, practices, and international agreements during the last four years. That famously includes removing the US from the landmark Paris climate accords and replacing Obama’s Clean Power Plan, which limits emissions from coal and natural-gas plants.

Deep Dive

Climate change and energy

How one mine could unlock billions in EV subsidies

The Inflation Reduction Act is starting to transform the US economy. To understand how, we tallied up the potential tax credits available as the nickel from a single mine flows through the supply chain.

Why hydrogen is losing the race to power cleaner cars

Batteries are dominating zero-emissions vehicles, and the fuel has better uses elsewhere.

This town’s mining battle reveals the contentious path to a cleaner future

The world needs to dig up far more minerals to meet climate goals. But mining poses environmental dangers that are bitterly dividing communities.

How virtual power plants are shaping tomorrow’s energy system

By orchestrating EVs, batteries, and smart home devices, VPPs can help make the grid cleaner and more efficient.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.