Donald Trump is famous for his controversial attitude and decisions, and this one is no different. He recently announced he would slash the budget for renewables by a huge 70%. The US Energy Department, which usually has a budget of $2.3 billion for their research, will now have $700m in Trump’s new fiscal 2020 budget request.
This isn’t the first time Trump has tried to halt these kinds of projects responsible for new technologies in renewables. He has, however, been stopped in his tracks before, with congress shunning his proposed cuts. Trump seems to favour the research and development of nuclear and fossil technology instead! You could be forgiven for thinking he is not behind tackling climate change at all!
Thankfully Trump doesn’t get the final say and it is unlikely congress will agree with the cuts to funding and other incentives for renewables. However, the constant attack on the development of renewables from Trump is worrying;
The budget proposal as currently written "is not good for renewable energy and other programs that target climate change," said Raj Prabhu
Unfortunately, Trump’s loyalties lie with coal and other fossil fuels, believing these polluting power sources can make a comeback, along with the jobs they create. However, most of America would disagree with him, throwing in the towel on fossil fuels in favour of solar and wind in a lot of states. Ironically, renewables employ more Americans than coal by around 3 times as much, so Trump’s idea that coal supplies more work is highly untrue.
It does seem extremely strange that Trump is trying to pull the rug from under renewables in the U.S. The industry provides many jobs for the country, it seems he must have his own agenda for trying to destroy the future of renewables!
