Harare, Zimbabwe (News of the South)-US President Donald Trump has scrapped off Barack Obama’s plan to curb global warming by signing an executive order which he has said will revive the coal industry reports France24.
According to the publication the move is part of his campaign pledge to unravel former President Barack Obama’s plan to curb global warming and he has previously called global warming a hoax invented by the Chinese.
“The order seeks to suspend, rescind or flag for review more than a half-dozen measures in an effort to boost domestic energy production in the form of fossil fuels”.
Despite protests from environmental activists like former Vice President Al Gore, Trump said the effort will allow workers to succeed on a level playing field for the first time in a long time”.
“This is what this is all about: bringing back our jobs, bringing back our dreams and making America wealthy again”.
The new executive order initiates a review of the Clean Power Plan, which restricts greenhouse gas emissions at coal-fired power plants.
The regulation, which was the former president’s signature effort to curb carbon emissions, has been the subject of long running legal challenges by Republican-led states and those who profit from burning oil, coal and gas.
France 24 reports that in addition to pulling back from the Clean Power Plan, the adminstration will also lift a 14-month old moratorium on new coal leases on federal lands.
The Obama adminstration had imposed a three year moratorium on new federal coal leases in January 2016, arguing that the $1billion a year program must be modernised to ensure a fair financial return to taxpayers and address climate change.
Opponents say Obama’s effort would have killed coal-mining jobs and driven up electricity costs.
The Obama adminstration, some Democratic-led states and environment groups counter that it would spur thousands of clean energy jobs and help the US meet ambitious goals to reduce carbon pollution set by the international agreement signed in Paris.
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