The Bronzer Age
We’re hurtling backward.
Environmentally speaking, under the Trump Administration, we’re jettisoning data, shutting down research, wiping out wisdom collected over decades, and ignoring the clarion calls of experts.
Collectively, this is the opposite of smart. In a moment when we urgently need to be forward thinking, we’re heading in the wrong direction.
Of course, this is not much of a surprise, as MAGA was designed to look backward — to gaze, fondly, behind us, to recall a vague moment when America was “great.”
But now we’re really stepping on the fossil-fueled gas and we’re rocketing in reverse, on the path to a Disenlightenment — to a New Dark Ages.
Call it the Bronzer Age.
We’re poised to be passengers on an information-less stupor highway, littered with absurd policies and catastrophic decisions that will have disastrous — possibly irreversible — negative consequences for the climate and the habitability of the planet.
Here are 10 specific examples of ruinous, rudderless leadership from this administration in just the last six months:
1) Rollbacks and Repeals at the EPA
We have regulations in place — established during the Biden era — that impose strict limits on greenhouse gases and toxic pollutants, such as mercury.
In June, the EPA released a proposal seeking to dismantle those regulations.
In 2009, the EPA published the critically important 2009 Endangerment Finding — the legal foundation that establishes one of the key causes of climate change, and that “the buildup of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere endangers public health and welfare.”
In March, the agency announced it was seeking to revoke the Finding.
2) Shutting Down Wind
In July, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management officially rescinded “all designated wind-energy areas in federal waters” — covering 3.5 million acres — a step the AP noted was “the latest step to suppress the [renewable-energy] industry.”
3) Elevating Dangerous Coal
Unchecked, coal plants can release a toxic stew, from mercury to arsenic to coal-ash pollution.
In mid‑April, the EPA granted exemptions to almost 70 coal plants from regulations prohibiting the release of such pollutants.
It also used to be that approval for such a harmful project was subject to a long review, to ensure the healthiest outcomes. But in July, the Department of the Interior fast-tracked approval for a major coal mine in Tennessee, using a new process that reduced environmental review from years to just 28 days.
4) Eliminating Weather Data
The Trump administration has proposed a $1.7 billion — or about 27% — cut to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s 2026 budget and the elimination of nearly all NOAA climate research labs. According to an internal document, the cuts are part of a larger plan to “eliminate all funding for climate, weather, and ocean laboratories and cooperative institutes.”
5) Water Gets Less Safe
PFAS (per‑ and poly‑fluoroalkyl substances) are also known as “forever chemicals.”
In May, the Trump administration moved to delay enforcement of — and in some cases repeal — federal limits on PFAS in drinking water, reversing Biden-era limits on industrial discharge of PFAs known to cause cancer and other health issues.
6) Dismantling Decades of Protections
From March to July of this year, the administration finalized or proposed 145 environmental rollbacks — covering greenhouse gas rules, water protections, vehicle standards, and more — with such aggression it was described by an expert as a “shock and awe” style campaign to eradicate decades of environmental law.
7) Cutting Environmental Justice Funding & Clean Water Grants
A $20 million grant in California intended to address pesticide-contaminated drinking water for over 5,500 low-income residents was rescinded by the Administration, which labeled the initiative a "wasteful DEI program."
8) Weakening the Magna Carta of the Environment
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies proposing actions potentially harmful to the environment — building roads, bridges, or energy projects — to study how their project will affect the environment. NEPA is often referred to as the “Magna Carta” of environmental law.
But to ease his AI Action Plan, announced in July, Trump is pushing to bypass NEPA by granting categorical exclusions for data centers and related infrastructure. These measures would eliminate environmental impact assessments for many projects.
9) U-Turn for California’s EV Mandate
In June, Trump signed the Congressional Review Act, nullifying California’s zero-emission vehicle mandate. This action dismantled emissions standards that have been used as a template by 12 other states aiming to phase out gasoline-only vehicle sales by 2035.
10) Loosening the Grain Belt
The administration canceled a $4.9 billion federal loan guarantee for the Grain Belt Express, a major wind-energy transmission-line project capable of powering over 3 million homes in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana. The project — which will now need to look for private financing — was designed to “reach areas where transmission infrastructure is sparse so that power generating stations could easily connect and transport energy.”
Why does all of this matter?
Because canceling wind projects and fast-tracking fossil fuel permits slows down the energy transition and increases carbon emissions, making the planet less habitable.
Because rolling back dozens of rules threatens air quality, water safety, and climate protections and increases public health threats, like respiratory illnesses, cancer, and premature deaths.
Because downsizing NOAA and decommissioning scientific databases compromises accurate weather forecasting and climate monitoring — impacts that ripple across federal emergency response.
Because this wide-scale deregulation campaign represents a fundamental dismantling of environmental safeguards at unprecedented speed.
As we continue to steam full-speed behind, remember this safety warning: The dangers in our rear-view mirror are closer than they appear.
