On Tuesday, March 28, President Trump signed an executive order that draws back government restrictions put in place to prevent climate change. Climate change is an increasingly dangerous problem that currently receives minimal attention from the federal government. Climate change poses far more threats than rising sea levels and increasing temperatures. Heat stress is expected to be responsible for 250,000 deaths between the years 2030 and 2050. Heat stress is among the many health risks caused by climate change. The rate at which temperature averages have increased in the past 30 years is far greater than in the past 1,000 years. Temperatures are increasing at an exponential rate; this should be cause for concern among government officials.

The establishment of the EPA in 1970 was an essential step towards preserving our planet. The EPA focuses on enforcing regulations and conducting studies to further our knowledge of how our actions affect the planet. Former president Obama addressed climate change as a threat consistently throughout his presidency. In 2013 he came to agreement with China on the reduction of hydrofluorocarbons. Obama has also set aside large portions of land across the country to conserve and protect.

Aside from failing to address climate change as a whole, president Trump plans to further limit how far the EPA’s authority stretches in terms of the pollution of water across the nation. President Trump claims to be putting American jobs above the increasing issue of climate change, however we must recognize that there is no wealth on a dead planet.