This week President Trump approved a
four-year tariff starting at 30% on internationally manufactured solar
equipment. The United States solar industry relies heavily on imported parts
for their installations, so this tariff will affect this 28 billion dollar
industry tremendously. The industry is now projecting a 23,000-person job loss
this year. Trump argues this tariff is targeted at China, one of the key solar
panel manufacturers and to level the playing field for domestic manufacturers. This
move by Trump poses a trade risk as foreign nations could now establish new
trade barriers, and I assume have a variety of repercussions on many different national industries.
This
is not the first act by President Trump to hurt the renewable energy market, as
he has already pulled out of the Paris agreement, as well as dropped
regulations on power plants. With the threat of climate change looming on the
horizon, and countless studies validating its existence, I believe these
current acts are inhibiting innovation and growth in a key sector. Renewable
energy not only is an opportunity for job growth but also to reduce our carbon
footprint, which looks to be linked to the rise in current natural disasters we
have been facing. Our nation is lagging an incredible amount when compared to
other countries investing in research and development in renewable energy such
as Japan and the U.K; only time will tell how impactful this is on our economy
and our place on the global market.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-22/trump-taxes-solar-imports-in-biggest-blow-to-clean-energy-yet
6 comments:
I Think that these policies Trump has put us in place will likely lead to the U.S having to catch up to other countries in the long run. This will only serve to hurt the economy rather than to help it because we will have a struggle to become more energy efficient and our technology will be lagging behind other countries. The other big thing is this will have a large strain on the U.S relationship with china and other countries.
I agree that Trump's abstain to becoming more energy efficient will hinder the US economy in the long run. I also think that by pulling out of the Paris agreement, the view of the US by other world powers has increasingly become more negative and will decrease the United States' political pull in the world as well. This contributing to the already existing strain between China, which is becoming increasingly more influential in the world's political and economic landscape, and the United States.
I honestly do not the think the US economy will be hindered that much. While I don't think it is the best idea to place tariffs on incoming parts, I don't think this will have a significant impact on the Economy. Oil production in the US is increasing along with investment in domestic oil production. Some studies have estimated that in the future, domestic oil will be a major component of US GDP. However this is a major trade off because we have the ability to produce more but it will hurt the environment. This is a question of personal opinion.
I agree with Megan's insight on the policy decision. I believe that policy actions like this contradict the direction that the energy industry is headed in. Policies like this are ultimately slowing down innovation and efficiency within the economy.
I think it is very interesting how these tariffs will affect different states on a more crucial level. The country’s largest solar market, California, stands to lose the most from the tariff; with an expected 1,079-megawatt decline in new solar capacity between 2018 and 2022.
I agree! We are not only taking steps back in the international system as other nations around us adapt to renewable energy and resources, but we are also taking too many steps forward, much too quickly in fact, with our heavy carbon footprint. So while I think it's very easy to argue about what Trump's tariff on internationally manufactured solar equipment will do to the economy, I believe it's hinderance on the environment is what will matter most in the long run.
Post a Comment