A very dark day for polar bears and everything else living on Planet Earth

It spells danger when a president can deny all the evidence of climate change, says Mike Clayton

The day Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States of America was a dark day for polar bears.

There was never any real doubt where Trump’s sympathies lay, but the speed with which he’s indicated his contempt for the environment is scary.

By signing draft memoranda just four days into his presidency, facilitating the completion of oil pipelines blocked by the Obama administration on environmental grounds, he confirmed his “America First” policy, and put two fingers up to the rest of the world.

“Keystone XL” (1,900 miles, Alberta–nebraska), duplicates an existing pipeline and cuts across environmentally sensitive landscape. “The Dakota Access” pipeline (1,170 miles, North Dakota–illinois) will provide some short-term construction and steel jobs, but also suggest America intends to maintain a reliance on fossil fuels, further contributing to global warming.

In itself, the pipeline decision is just one item in the in-tray of a new president wanting to appear decisive. But, viewed alongside other events, a more calculating and cynical image is evident.

That same day he signed a directive ordering an end to protracted environmental reviews. Cutting red tape, dispensing with regulations which impede businesses: you know, things like environmental diligence, safety, compliance with acceptable standards, agreed global behaviour, the Paris Agreement.