How Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” Reverses U.S. Climate Gains

In what former President Donald Trump has called “the most beautiful bill in decades,” the newly passed One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) marks a sweeping shift in U.S. climate, energy, and environmental policy. While its proponents hail it as pro-business and pro-energy independence, environmental experts warn that it dismantles key climate protections, guts clean-energy incentives, and significantly weakens the U.S. trajectory toward sustainability. At a time when global temperatures continue to rise and climate resilience is more urgent than ever, this bill could turn back years of progress.

At the heart of OBBB is a near-total repeal of the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) climate provisions, which had been described as the most significant climate legislation in American history. These provisions included hundreds of billions of dollars in tax credits and subsidies for solar, wind, battery storage, electric vehicles, and home electrification. The OBBB removes or severely weakens many of those incentives, claiming that such “green handouts” distort markets and reward “elitist climate fantasies.” The practical result, however, is a sharp slowdown in the deployment of clean energy infrastructure across the U.S.

Renewable energy developers are already reporting project cancellations and delays. Several large-scale solar and wind farms in states like Texas, Arizona, and Ohio have been shelved due to uncertainty about federal support. Manufacturing plants for electric vehicles and batteries that had planned to expand in Michigan and Georgia are now on hold. Meanwhile, analysts project a significant drop in new capacity: up to 300 gigawatts less solar and wind by 2035 compared to pre-OBBB forecasts. That’s enough to power over 100 million homes.

Simultaneously, the bill delivers major wins to the fossil fuel industry. It expands oil and gas lease sales on federal lands and waters, lowers royalties on drilling, and delays or repeals new methane pollution standards. The bill also reclassifies coal as a “strategic fuel,” allowing coal plants to bypass certain EPA restrictions and environmental reviews. Combined, these changes signal a government pivot back toward carbon-heavy energy sources—despite global consensus that fossil fuels must be phased out to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

The environmental consequences go far beyond carbon emissions. By slashing funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and rolling back regulations on wetlands, toxic chemicals (including PFAS “forever chemicals”), and hazardous waste disposal, the OBBB weakens basic environmental safeguards. Critics argue that this not only increases pollution risks but also exposes vulnerable communities—often low-income and communities of color—to heightened health dangers. Environmental justice provisions established by the Biden administration are effectively erased.

Public lands, once protected for conservation and recreation, are now open season for extractive industries. The bill streamlines permitting for mining and drilling, cuts funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and repeals key parts of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which for decades required environmental impact assessments before major federal projects. Native American tribes, environmental groups, and scientists have raised alarms, calling this a “corporate land grab” disguised as energy reform.

On the international front, the bill jeopardizes the U.S.’s credibility in global climate negotiations. As Europe doubles down on renewables and China races ahead with green tech investments, the U.S. is seen as retreating. Already, foreign clean-energy investors are shifting their attention away from the American market. Meanwhile, U.S. withdrawal from key climate financing mechanisms under OBBB—including the Green Climate Fund—further alienates global partners and undercuts climate diplomacy in the Global South.

The irony is that many of these changes are occurring amid record heat waves, wildfires, floods, and climate-induced migration pressures. July 2025 is already being recorded as one of the hottest months in global history. Yet the OBBB pretends the climate emergency doesn’t exist—or worse, that it’s a political hoax. That’s not just a matter of ideology; it’s a threat to national security, public health, and economic stability.

Economic fallout may come sooner than expected. Clean energy jobs—one of the fastest-growing sectors in the past decade—are expected to decline by 700,000 to 800,000 over the next 5 years. Energy prices could rise, particularly in the Southeast and Midwest, as utilities revert to older, more expensive energy sources like natural gas and coal. Households that could have benefited from rooftop solar or electric heat pumps will now face higher utility bills and fewer financing options.

Supporters of the bill claim it promotes “energy freedom,” but that freedom appears largely reserved for fossil fuel companies. There’s no equivalent push for distributed energy generation, community solar programs, or grid modernization. Instead, the bill concentrates power (literally and metaphorically) in aging, centralized fossil fuel infrastructure. In doing so, it undermines long-term energy resilience—especially in the face of increasing grid strain from extreme weather and AI-driven data demand.

Ultimately, the OBBB is not just an energy bill—it’s a vision statement. It rejects the idea that environmental sustainability should guide economic or political policy. It assumes the future will look like the past: coal-fired, deregulated, and unconcerned with planetary limits. In doing so, it dismisses the warnings of scientists, the innovation of engineers, and the lived experiences of millions already affected by climate change.

But the story doesn’t end here. Part two will explore how states, cities, and communities are fighting back—and what alternative paths remain for keeping sustainability alive in a federal landscape turned hostile.