Bad Timing: Solar Tariffs Approved As Climate Disasters Reach Costliest Levels

NEW YORK — “Excessive taxes on solar imports snuff out one of the bright spots in our fight to protect birds and people from climate change,” said Matthew Anderson, vice president of Audubon’s Climate Initiative, in response to the Trump Administration’s approval of a 30-percent tariff on imported solar technology.

"The path toward ‘energy dominance’ is paved with solar panels, and the federal government shouldn’t make them harder to obtain. Americans from all across the political spectrum support the adoption of clean energy, and reducing carbon pollution should be a top priority for leaders on both sides of the aisle.

“The White House can and should reverse today’s decision and instead take bold steps toward a clean energy future.”

Recently, a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published a report detailing the record-breaking costs of weather and climate-related disasters in the United States in 2017. The US experienced 16 such disasters with losses exceeding $1 billion, and total costs for the year climbed past $300 billion—a new annual record.

In 2014, Audubon published its Birds and Climate Change Report. The study shows that more than half of the bird species in North America could lose at least half of their current ranges by 2080 due to rising temperatures. These species include the Bald Eagle, the American Kestrel and the Northern Harrier.

Given the urgent threat climate change poses to birds and people, Audubon supports common-sense, bipartisan solutions that reduce carbon pollution at the speed and scale necessary to protect birds and the places they need. 

To learn more about Audubon’s Climate Initiative, including how members and supporters can take steps to help birds in a changing climate, please visit www.audubon.org/climate. To read about solar options in your state and why solar energy is good for birds, please click here.

The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow, throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education and on-the-ground conservation. Audubon's state programs, nature centers, chapters and partners have an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire and unite diverse communities in conservation action. Since 1905, Audubon's vision has been a world in which people and wildlife thrive. Audubon is a nonprofit conservation organization. Learn more how to help at www.audubon.organd follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @audubonsociety.

Contact: Nicolas Gonzalez, ngonzalez@audubon.org, (212) 979-3068.

###