As Environmentalists Prepare for President Trump, Some Look to Texas for Lessons

The country is about to look a lot like Texas has for years.

By Mose BucheleDecember 2, 2016 9:57 am, , ,

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From KUT

To say President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration has public health and environmental advocates worried may be an understatement.  Like a lot of Republicans, Trump wants to roll back environmental protections and some people are already protesting his positions in the streets.

But, beyond protest, how will these groups push their agendas under the next administration?

Some say it’s worth taking a look at Texas for lessons. That’s because, with Republicans controlling Congress and the executive branch, the country is about to look a lot like Texas has for years.

That’s what Dan Cohan, a professor of Environmental Engineering at Rice University, recently voiced in his editorial for The Hill “Lessons From a Red State, How to Go Green Under Republicans.”

He says a lot of people are surprised to hear Texas is a leader in wind power. But it is, and that’s because politicians here supported the development of transmission line infrastructure. Similarly, massive infrastructure investment is also a goal of the Trump administration.

“So because there’s already that momentum there behind infrastructure, let’s pivot from it and reshape a plan that really does address our nation’s needs and really catalyzes more growth in clean energy, just like we’ve done here in Texas,” he said.

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