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An Overview of Biden’s Climate Plan

written by Raven Steele | January 19, 2021

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From rising sea levels, shrinking ice sheets, and polar bears being vulnerable to extinction, climate change is rapidly growing and we are already starting to see the effects it has on the world. In the United States alone, massive forest fires, flooding in the midwest, unsafe drinking water, amongst others, indicate that climate change is all around us and affects us all.

What is Climate Change?

Climate change is defined as a long-term change in average weather patterns that are accustomed to Earth’s local, regional, and global climates. These drastic changes in seasonal temperatures and disproportionate weather patterns are primarily linked to human activity; in particular, fossil fuel burning.

President-elect Joe Biden has enacted a climate plan to combat the seemingly ever-growing climate crisis. Global warming and climate change was first spotlighted by mainstream media as a growing problem in the 1980s, however it hasn’t been until now where we have seen aggressive policy being proposed by U.S. administration to move into a greener future.

While the climate crisis is not expected to be fixed overnight, in order to be successful, this gradual process needs to be collectively supported by the new administration, businesses, and organizations, and held accountable by society. Hence why educating ourselves on these issues and policies are important to promote action.

The Biden Plan Explained

Unlike the Trump administration – who reversed over 100 environmental rules – the Biden-Harris party are promising big transitions into sustainable solutions. For example…

“President-Elect Joe Biden will become a leader that will ensure that the U.S. will achieve a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions by no later than 2050.”

Source: https://joebiden.com

The big claim above means that he will prioritize creating a balance between the greenhouse gas emissions that we emit and the amount we remove from the atmosphere. This can be done by focusing on things like solar panels, wind turbines, and electric charging stations.

In addition, Biden has ensured to also make climate change a national security priority; therefore promising to rebuild the nation and make sure that buildings, roads, bridges, and transportation can withstand the effects of climate change.

Through large investments in clean energy research and innovation, The Biden Climate Plan will push the development, affordability, and accessibility of Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) technologies – capturing CO2 emissions and preventing them from being released into the atmosphere.

Plans Enacted Once in Office

Climate change is a global challenge that needs to be tackled head on by leaders around the world. Biden has promised that on his first day in office he plans to sign executive orders to fast track combating environmental injustice.

One of which is rejoining the Paris Agreement, which the U.S. was briefly removed from in 2020 by the Trump Administration. As a recap, the Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty created in 2015 that includes commitments from nearly 200 countries to cut their climate pollution and combat the environmental issues. Rejoining would be a significant step to getting back to working with other nations to battle the climate crisis.

Furthermore, while energy-efficient plans are costly, to stay true to their green vision, the Biden-Harris party has pledged that they will not accept any form of donations from oil, gas, and coal corporations. Instead, they will fund the climate plan by reversing tax cuts given to fossil fuel companies by President Trump.

Helping the People

The Biden Climate Plan calls for a worldwide ban on fossil fuel assistance. Climate change and global warming doesn’t only affect our wildlife and greenery. Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and fence line communities have been linked to suffer at the hands of giant fossil fuel companies that harm the environment by poisoning the surrounding air and water.

Communities across America are experiencing issues like food deserts and water contamination, directly linked to the fossil fuel industry. The neighborhoods directly affected by climate change will have the opportunity to work with the administration to ensure safer communities; working to ensure that low-income and BIPOC communities will be amongst the first to benefit from the new aged “green” economy.

To establish a smooth transition, Biden has promised to provide sustainable clean energy jobs, fair wages, benefits, and worker protection for those who currently work in the gas, oil, and airline industries. Furthermore, to further prevent community health defects, public companies will now be required to disclose any climate risks in their business operations.

Our Future

To survive on a habitable planet, climate change will need to be addressed through aggressive policy in order to decarbonize the U.S properly by 2050. What we choose to do within the next decade can be crucial to the ending of global warming. A collaborative effort to reach net-zero emissions would mean a bright future not only for ourselves but for generations to come.

To read more on Biden’s Plan for a Clean Energy Revolution and Environmental Justice, follow the link here.

meet the author

• Conscious Travel
  • Education
  • Climate Change
• Environmental & Social Justice
• Green Guides
• Sustainable Living

• ecomadic

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Mossville, Louisiana: A Place Where Fruit Trees Fall & Industrial Plants Rise

Written by Jaclyn Yost | December 22, 2020

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Mossville, Louisiana – a town founded in 1790 by Jack Moss, a freed slave – has slowly watched their ancestral-inspired street names be replaced by a cluster of oil refineries and petrochemical plants. The previous self-sustaining community has been faced to endure the toxic fumes of over 14 industrial plants throughout the years. Ultimately accepting small buyouts to depart their homes which have been passed down through generations; leaving memories and a sense of security behind for a lifetime of deteriorating health and debt ahead.

Mossville History

Mossville was established for families to escape their terror reality; becoming a safe haven for a small community of families through the Civil War and Jim Crow. Their thriving community was based on the principles of peace and happiness, but this began to be disrupted by the industrial era between the 1940s and 1950s.

Today, companies like Conoco, 66 Phillips, Formosa Plastics, and PPG have moved in. These plants handle commodities like oil and gas, petrochemicals, and vinyl chloride (the main ingredient in PVC). Burning hazardous waste day and night, they release toxic emissions into the air, exposing the surrounding Mossville community. 

Sasol — The Plant Wiping Mossville off the Map

The largest shake up came in 2000 when South African chemical giant Sasol – infamously known for operating Secunda, the world’s biggest single-site emitter of greenhouse gases – became a foreign investor, simultaneously making Mossville one of the most polluted corners in the United States. As of 2016, it was reported that the industrial complex cost totaled US$21 billion and cover 2,034 acres of land.

The company is no stranger to disruption. Back in South Africa, the growth of their local petrochemical centres and various chemical plants have caused mass displacement. Primarily white communities began to resettle due to the wind direction of the plants, and a Black community called Zamdela Township moved in. Zamdela directly translates to “forgetting about the person”; representing Sasol’s prioritization of profit over quality opportunity and human health/life. Their relentless nature to pollute at free will showcases racial segregation and disregard for the environment directly through business operations.

Industrial Impacts

Air pollution, deforestation, soil and water contamination, oil spills, and waste overflow are just some of the environmental impacts that have come hand-in-hand with plant operations. These already detrimental consequences come with health concerns too. In particular, the link with Dioxins – chemical compounds that are highly toxic through skin contact and absorption through the digestive and respiratory tracts. According to the WHO, Dioxins “can cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere with hormones, and cause cancer.” Many in the town of Mossville report multiple cancer deaths and health problems within their own immediate families.

With contaminated waters, air and chemical pollution, and constant construction, residents began to complain that the area was so miserable that the “voluntary buyout” became no choice. Families eventually gave in. Taking less money than deserved to uproot their lives, many of whom were/are uncertain of where to go. 

[One of] The Last Resident’s Fight

The story of Stacey Ryan – former Mossville resident – is popularly reported on when discussing the issues that the dwindling Louisiana town is facing. He was the last homeowner of his neighborhood and challenged Sasol’s chemical plant expansion by putting up a fence around his property line in protest.

As time went on, the land became impossible to live on. From the constant rezoning, Stacey no longer had access to utilities, sewer and water lines, and was unable to obtain permits for electricity as he now lived in an industrial zone. With boils popping up on his face and body, he eventually succumbed to Sasol’s settlement. Most of which ended up going to medical bills.

Mossville & Beyond

At Mossville’s peak, over 8,000 people resided in the Louisiana town. Now, as of 2019, only about 1,302 are left. Thousands of homes have been demolished, and people have been scattered and displaced – Mossville, a once harmonious town, is slowly being erased. 

Unfortunately, the case of Mossville is not a singular event. The concepts of environmental injustice and racism are deeply intertwined. Whether we recognize it or not, our society’s need for constant development and consumerism leads to the inhuman treatment of fenceline communities around the world – commonly lower-income, Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) populations. The very commodities that make our world go round are poisoning the communities who are continuously and unrightfully being settled in between oil and chemical refineries. 

The connectivity between our consumption patterns and the aftermath needs to become more apparent before seismic change can occur. This level of consciousness is needed to shift to a post carbon world that includes sustainable and regenerative operational models. Because without, the current endless, repetitive cycles will continue – unapologetically killing our communities and our Earth. 

Want to learn more?

Check out the documentary ‘Mossville: When Great Trees Fall’ here.

Other recommended sources:

A Massive Chemical Plant is Poised to Wipe This Louisiana Town off the Map – Mother Jones

Erasing Mossville – The Intercept_

Breathing While Black in Mossville, Louisiana – Scalawag Magazine

What’s Growing in Mossville? – Gravy, Southern Foodways Alliance Podcast

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