Trump nominates critic of federal environmental regulation to lead Environmental policies

After what appeared to be glimpses of a U-turn on the Donald Trump's stance on Environmental Policy, the President of the United States goes back to his initial prejudices and nominates Scott Pruit, a climate-change denier, as environmental chief.

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It was a case of sitting back and waiting for it to happen. A little more than a year ago, when Donald Trump was just a presidential hopeful with little chances of reaching the White House, the billionaire did not hesitate when asked by Fox News what departments he would cut if he were to be nominated as President of the United States: “Environmental Protection, what they do is a disgrace. Every week they come out with new regulations”.

When asked to comment on who was going to protect the environment he reassured Fox News that the US would be “fine with the environment. We can leave a little bit, but you can’t destroy businesses”.

At a time when the EU and key institutions are trying to reach agreements to carry out climate friendly policies, Trump appeared to have gone back on his comments claiming that climate change was a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, one of the few comments during a campaign that rarely saw him show any compromise or initiatives towards commitments to stop global warming, when he suggested in a New York Times interview that there was is “some connectivity” between humans and climate change and also when he met several prominent environmentalists, including Al Gore.

His recent claims that he would not withdraw from the COP21 agreements in Paris that he had heavily criticised during his Presidential campaigning, assuring that he was “looking at it very closely” with “an open mind to it”, was a slight cause for optimism among environmentalists.

However, this week Mr Trump has gone back to his roots. By naming Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, an open critic of federal environmental regulation, to lead the EPA, the President of the United States has ruthlessly shunned environmentalists, casing outrage amongst activists and joy in the oil industry. The move signals Trump’s intent to cut back regulations in order to free up drilling and coal mining in order to create jobs in an industry that he believes has been destroyed by the EPA’s misspending of taxpayer dollars and palpable anti-energy agenda.

Pruitt, a lawyer who in the past intended to destroy the very agency he is set to preside, has been a harsh critic of Barack Obama’s measures to fight climate change and has provided legal advice to states who were not content with elements of Obama’s climate change strategy, in particular those regarding curbing carbon output and reduce smog.

Despite studies from 97% of the world’s scientists showing that ten of the warmest yeas in history have occurred in the past 12, and that the planet is ineludibly getting hotter and its oceans have risen nearly 7 inches in the last century, Pruitt’s stance towards the credibility is irremovable, and according to his statements, his mission in the EPA seems clear.

"The American people are tired of seeing billions of dollars drained from our economy due to unnecessary EPA regulations, and I intend to run this agency in a way that fosters both responsible protection of the environment and freedom for American businesses," Pruitt was quoted as saying.

The transition team statement also added that Pruitt was "a national leader against the EPA’s job-killing war on coal" who will help implement Trump's energy plan.

Comments arose quickly amongst the many critics of Donald Trump’s decision, fearing the consequences of this choice.

Ken Cook, the head of the Environmental Working Group, a Washington DC research and advocacy organisation, told the New York Times that it is a “safe assumption that Pruitt could be the most hostile E.P.A. administrator toward clean air and safe drinking water in history”.

Dr Rush Holt, the chief executive of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), compared disbelief in global warming to denying the existence of gravity, whilst the Sierra Club, a major grassroots environmental group in the US subtly stated that the decision to name Pruitt a head of the EPA was “like putting an arsonist in charge of fighting fires”

There are hard and stubborn times ahead for the US President, who persisted with his controversial agenda by nomination Rex Tillerson, not only the CEO of oil and gas company Exxon Mobil Corporation and but also a close ally of Vladimir Putin, and now more than ever, it is vital that environmental agencies and institutions do their part to persist in curbing climate change and saving the environment in the midst of harsh adversity.