In Jan 2025, President Trump declared a “national energy emergency” and issued the Unleashing American Energy executive order, pivoting federal policy back to fossil fuels.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin hailed the move as “the greatest day of deregulation,” pledging to end EPA oversight of greenhouse gases and weaken other pollution rules.
Central to the plan is overturning the EPA’s 2009 “endangerment finding,” which established GHGs as a threat to human health and gave the agency authority to regulate emissions.
By repealing it, the administration seeks to remove EPA’s legal responsibility to curb emissions from power plants, vehicles, and oil and gas operations.
Trump officials argue the finding was a flawed Obama-era overreach under the Clean Air Act, while ignoring the far higher economic costs of climate damage.
Environmental groups say the rollback is a “giant gift to oil companies,” designed to protect fossil fuel interests while undermining climate action.
At the same time, the Interior Department introduced a rule requiring the secretary’s personal approval for all solar and wind projects on federal lands - a de facto ban on renewables.
Budget cuts were also announced at NOAA, targeting CO₂ monitoring programs in place since 1958.
Critics warn the U.S. is abandoning its Paris commitments for a second time, despite being the world’s second-largest emitter and largest historical contributor to global emissions.
Trump’s stance is reinforced by dismissive rhetoric: solar and wind are described as “ugly” and “inefficient,” while fossil fuels are promoted as central to “restoring prosperity.”