Slate Mag: ‘The Renewable Energy Revolution Is Unstoppable — Yes, even under Donald Trump’
https://slate.com/technology/2024/11/trump-climate-change-renewable-energy-solar-hope.html
By Eric Holthaus
There’s no question that the forthcoming return of Donald Trump and his willful disregard for science, truth, and basic empathy is a massive step backward in the struggle toward a world built on justice, equity, and a stable climate. Trump has promised to re-exit the Paris Climate Accord, all but ending any realistic hope of a truly global climate effort before the world reaches the 1.5 C threshold. Here at home, Trump’s plans for the environment range from heavy-handed (massively downsizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and NASA) to selfish (creating tax breaks for oil companies in exchange for campaign contributions) to downright bizarre (abolishing regulations for low-flow showerheads). As veteran climate champion Bill McKibben said in a statement on Wednesday, the consequences of this election will likely be measured in geological time.
And yet: I think it’s important to say that all the collective work pushing for a greener world for the past 50 years has also measurably altered the trajectory of our civilization away from a worst-case climate scenario and toward a more verdant world. Along the way, there have been many other huge steps backward—some that came well before the first national park was established, or the first Earth Day was celebrated. Like I told my kids the morning after the election, when you’re going on a long walk in the woods, sometimes you get lost.
While Trump was elected on a “burn it all to the ground” platform, he will not be able to undo everything we’ve gained on climate. A particular bright spot is the global surge in renewable energy: I don’t think it is at risk of slowing anytime soon—no matter what Trump does.
Trump may gut environmental regulations, but even without them wind and solar are now the cheapest source of new energy in the world, period. Even in China and India, wind and solar are now much cheaper than coal. China alone is on pace to add twice as much wind and solar this year as the rest of the world combined.
Wind and solar now make up 15 percent of the world’s energy mix, up from just 1 percent only 10 years ago. They are now consistently eating away at the share held by fossil fuels—a trend that will continue all the way to net zero. Basically: We did it. We’ve secured a clean energy future for ourselves. The only question remaining is how fast this future will become reality.
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There will be plenty of opportunities to mourn environmental losses under Trump, but climate warriors should be unquestionably praised for the fruits of their years of efforts. Because literally every solar panel and wind turbine matters more now than ever before.