The President’s climate action plan is a document that brings up vital ideas and actions for the future of climate protection. The plan discusses how to cut carbon pollution in America, how to prepare the US for the impacts of climate change, and how to lead international efforts to address global climate change. Within these three plans, there are three initiatives that I found the most interesting and most important. These include cutting energy waste in homes, businesses, and factories , leading at a federal level, and protecting our economy and natural resources.

Cutting Waste in Homes, Businesses, and Factories

This initiative is important to me because it applies to American’s on a personal level. The things we do in our daily lives both in and out of our homes are contributing to global warming. The only way we can take action in slowing down global warming is if we commit to cutting waste in our homes, businesses and factories. Not only will cutting waste reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it will help to save families money and make our businesses more competitive. During President Obama’s first term in office, the Department of Housing and Urban Development made upgrades in more than one million homes, which saved many families more than $400 on their heating/cooling bills in the first year alone. President Obama is determined to achieve his goal of doubling energy productivity by 2030. During Obama’s first term, the Department of Energy established new minimum efficiency standards for dishwashers,refrigerators, and many other products. The plan leading up to 2030 is to cut  consumers’ electricity bills by hundreds of billions of dollars and safe enough electricity to power more than 85 million homes for 2 years. Saving energy in our homes with the most commonly used household products and help us to save money and cut down CO2 emissions. The Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service has already made updates to its Energy Efficiency and Conservation Loan Program  to provide up to $250 million for dual utilities to finance efficiency investments. The President has a goal to have American commercial and industrial buildings be 20% more energy efficient in the next five years. Results are already showing improvements. If we can cut waste in our homes, will can help move towards cleaner air.

Leading at a Federal Level 

This initiative explains that the President and federal government must be the leaders in clean energy and energy efficiency. This is extremely important because someone must be the leader in this action in order for results to show. If the federal government does’t take energy efficiency and clean energy seriously, then no one will. The federal government needs to set an example and present these initiatives in order for businesses and homes to partake in change. The federal government must not only present these new ideas, but make action happen. Already under the Obama Administration, federal agencies have reduced greenhouse gas emission by more than 15% which is the equivalent of permanently taking 1.5 million cars off the road. The new goal presented in this initiative is that the Federal government will consume 20% of its electricity from renewable sources in the next 5 years. In 2011, President Obama signed a memorandum called “Implementation of Energy Savings Project and Performance-Based Contracting for Energy Savings.” This challenged federal agencies to enter into $2 billion worth of performance-based contracts within 2 years. The federal government is the only leader that can provide money for clean energy research and action. They are a vital leader in energy efficiency and clean energy.

Protecting our Economy and Natural Resources

It is obvious that global warming is happening now and its effects could drastically change the way we live in the future. Global warming is already affecting nearly every aspect of our society, and will only get worse unless we make some changes. The only thing we can do now to help slow down the effects of global warming is  by being more energy efficient, cutting down waste and protecting our economy and natural resources for the future. In 2013 the Department of Agriculture and Department of the Interior released several studies outlining the challenges a changing climate poses for America’s agricultural enterprise, forests, waters supply, wildlife, and public lands. Federal agencies are coming up with strategies to address these changes as well as efforts focusing on health, transportation, food supply, oceans, and coastal communities. The Department of Health and Human Services is working to launch an effort to create sustainable and resilient hospitals in the face of climate change.  It is important that our hospitals and medical systems are resilient to climate impacts. There will also be lessons to prepare communities for the health consequences of climate change including health risks and resilience measures. The importance of conservation of land and water resources is also mentioned in this initiative. Our ecosystems are critical to our nation’s economy and the lives and health of our citizens. It is important to preserve this resources because they will not only help ameliorate the impacts of climate change, but they are essential in our lives. It is also important that the federal government makes plans on managing drought, reducing wildfire risks, and preparing for future floods. I believe this initiative is very important because the effects of global warming are only going to get worse if we keep at the rate we are at now. Although most people don’t want to accept it, we must prepare for the future. Either we make changes now or suffer the consequences in the future. Although we may not be alive when these changes happen, we must have the best interest of our children (someday) in mind. The Federal government must take action on what their efforts will be for the future that way we can be prepared for what the effects of climate change may bring.