The upcoming Trump administration has promised the rollback of environmental protections that are relevant on both global and community levels.
These nationwide changes are likely to affect sustainability initiatives and research in Corvallis and at Oregon State University.
Annette Mills, director of the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition, said policy changes made by the Biden administration have directly affected the Corvallis community.
Climate protection initiatives such as the Inflation Reduction Act have brought “significant federal funding to Corvallis to maximize energy efficiency opportunities for everyone, including renters, homeowners, landlords and businesses — regardless of income,” Mills said.
This act has funded many organizations working to slow down the effects of climate change from state to state. The Trump administration plans to rescind this act which he stated at the Economic Club of New York in September.
Mills said the eradication of environmental funds through acts like the IRA might cause state backlash “regardless of their political leanings.”
She said she expected “pushback from all states that have been receiving these funds” over the next presidential term.
Professor and director of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute Erica Fleishman said “Oregon’s state and local governments will continue to have jurisdiction over many policies related to land use and environmental quality.”
Fleishman also said that regardless of independent state decisions, “the environment does not respect political boundaries.”
Although concerns exist over college campuses nationwide, mechanical engineering and environmental science major Jacoby Crossler said this is the moment to take personal initiative when it comes to concerns of the future.
“We were raised with the promise that our generation would be the first to see the large-scale impacts of climate change,” Crossler said.
He said this generational detriment is a potential opportunity for action.
“With worsening wildfire season and droughts, I think it is an unavoidable spectacle in a state as immersed in nature as Oregon,” Crossler said.
While Crossler looks at these recent environmental statistics with worry, he also calls his OSU peers to get involved in community efforts combating climate change.
He suggested clubs like the Bird Nerds or Crop and Soil Science Club that specialize in specific environmental interests, or broader groups focussing on the climate initiative like the Environmental Sciences Club or the Fisheries and Wildlife Club.
The Trump administration plans to pull the United States out of the Paris Agreement according to Politico, which he also did during his last administration, affecting policies like the deregulation of fossil fuel emission and polluting future environmental proactive efforts.
This decision reflects promises made by Trump’s campaign platform: promoting greater business opportunity without the regulations of these global climate protection initiatives.
Mills said, “What we do at the local level matters now more than ever,” – a community call to action for the wellbeing of our local environment to keep sustainability efforts on track regardless of the political climate.
