How Trump Could Actually Increase Fossil Fuel Production

This communicative originally appeared connected Vox and is portion of the Climate Desk collaboration.

During his campaign, president-elect Donald Trump had a pointed tagline for his vigor policy: “Drill, baby, drill.”

That connection is emblematic of wherever Trump is poised to absorption his efforts successful a 2nd term: He’s pledged US “energy dominance” and everything from “new pipelines” to “new refiners” that amp up fossil substance production.

This attack marks a stark displacement from the Biden administration’s and puts the US’s accent much heavy connected producing lipid and state than connected attempting a modulation to cleanable vigor sources. In summation to touting the request to boost fossil fuels, Trump has disparaged subsidies for cleanable vigor investments and called for “terminat[ing]” the funds that were allocated for those subsidies successful the Inflation Reduction Act. His stance ignores the relation that burning fossil fuels has played successful clime alteration and could origin sizeable harm to US efforts to code the issue.

Several of his nominations are indicative of these goals. He’s chosen lipid manufacture enforcement Chris Wright—a fracking evangelist—to caput up the Department of Energy. He’s named North Dakota politician Doug Burgum—who connected Trump to lipid executive donors during the campaign—as the pb for the Interior Department and arsenic an “energy czar.” He’s besides tapped erstwhile typical Lee Zeldin—who’s emphasized his committedness to deregulation—as his main of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

There’s lone truthful overmuch the medication tin control, however. Although Trump tin instrumentality notable steps to effort to summation fossil substance production, existent upticks successful lipid and state extraction volition beryllium heavy connected the backstage assemblage and the economics of the industry.

Still, portion Trump faces immoderate constraints, helium has important argumentation levers helium tin propulsion to promote accumulation of fossil fuels. Wright, Burgum, and Zeldin person besides signaled they’re prepared to execute connected the president-elect’s vision, including changes to drilling connected nationalist lands and speedier permitting for lipid and state projects.

“President Trump and his vigor team—Mr. Burgum, Mr. Wright, Mr. Zeldin—can spell to sizeable lengths to marque expanded accumulation charismatic and comparatively easy,” Barry Rabe, a University of Michigan biology argumentation professor, told Vox.

How Trump Could Increase Fossil Fuel Production

Trump has 2 cardinal avenues helium tin utilize to boost fossil substance production. One, helium tin unfastened up much nationalist lands and waters for exploration, development, and extraction. Two, helium tin easiness the regulatory processes that govern fossil substance work.

Trump Could Offer More Oil and Gas Leases connected Public Lands

As president, Trump volition oversee the Interior Department, which includes the Bureau of Land Management arsenic good arsenic the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, some of which negociate a important fraction of the country’s nationalist lands and waters. He’ll besides oversee the Agriculture Department, which contains the Forest Service, different assemblage that has oversight of immoderate nationalist lands.

The Bureaus of Land Management and Ocean Energy Management, arsenic good arsenic the Forest Service, are the 3 main entities that contented lipid and state leases connected nationalist spaces. These leases efficaciously let fossil substance companies to rent parcels of nationalist onshore from the national authorities truthful they tin extract resources from these areas. Once onshore is designated arsenic disposable for lease, leases are typically auctioned disconnected to the highest bidder.