NRDC Raises Alarm Over Trump’s Fossil Fuel Policies, Projects 700 Billion Dollar Clean Energy Investment Loss

The Natural Resources Defence Council has warned that President Donald Trump’s fossil fuel policies could cost the United States about 700 billion dollars in clean energy investment over the next decade.

According to nonprofit Natural Resources Defence Council  report, after analysing the impact of the administration’s energy policies on the US electricity sector.

The report says the policies include cutting clean energy tax credits, imposing tariffs, delaying wind projects and keeping ageing coal and gas plants in operation, which could lead to the loss of between 390 and 540 gigawatts of new wind, solar and energy storage capacity by 2035.

According to the analysis, the policies could also force American consumers to spend up to 30 billion dollars more on electricity every year by 2035, with household bills rising by as much as 25 percent in some parts of the country.

The NRDC says the continued use of older fossil fuel plants, combined with rising electricity demand from data centres, could double power-sector carbon dioxide emissions to more than one billion metric tonnes by 2035.

It further estimates that the increased pollution could cause up to 69,000 additional premature deaths and 85,000 extra emergency room visits and hospital admissions over the next decade.

Speaking on the findings, NRDC Director of Policy Analysis Amanda Levin said the Trump administration’s policies are destroying clean energy investments while allowing older coal plants to continue polluting, thereby increasing electricity costs and threatening public health and the climate.