Trump Presidency Looms Over New York’s Ambitious Climate Agenda
With former Hochul rival Lee Zeldin nominated as next EPA commissioner, commitments to carbon-free electricity and steeply reduced greenhouse gas emissions grow increasingly hazy. This article originally appeared in The City. By Samantha Maldonado NEW YORK - With President Donald Trump set to return to the White House, New York is all but on its own to play catch-up with its ambitious, legally mandated climate goals. The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, passed in 2019 during Trump’s first presidential term, requires the state to have zero-emissions electricity by 2040 and slash greenhouse gas emissions 85% by 2050. While the state has made some progress — aided in large part by the Biden administration, whose friendly stance toward climate action gave way to smoother offshore wind permitting and tax incentives for cleaner vehicles — it’s got a long way to go. Even with that wind at its back, however, New York had already fallen about thr