Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Paris climate agreement in 2020. Now, more states are following suit – but for very different reasons.
Most states that set 2030 goals are not on track to meet them, such as Massachusetts’ 4% goal for annual change in emissions (currently 1.9%), New York’s goal of 4.3% (currently 1.7%), or worse, Nevada’s goal of 4.7% (currently 0.4%).
Energy prices rising and constantly changing US regulations surrounding renewables mean that a net zero US is not looking like an achievable goal on the horizon.
The Trump administration is also making it progressively harder to hit these goals, by removing consumer credits for EV purchases/heat pumps, cancelling grants for renewables projects, suing states, halting wind projects and more.
As a result states have begun loosening their goals and policies, or in some cases scrapping them all together.
Many of those goals were made at a time where net zero was an idea, rather than a plan. In those same states, largely due to unforeseen circumstances, they already have relatively clean electricity generation and can’t change much more.
They do have power over utilities, yet country-wide policies in place by Trump mean that housing, transport and other sectors can’t be touched, leaving states relatively at a stalemate with where to reduce emissions next in order to hit their targets.
Whilst some states are still pushing towards cleaner energy useage, states aren’t likely to reach emissions reductions at the scale of the Paris agreement without help from the federal government.
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