Biden on Amazon visit says "nobody can reverse" clean energy progress
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President Biden during a visit to the Amazon rainforest in Manaus, Brazil, on Sunday, before heading to Rio de Janeiro for the G20 Summit. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
President Biden, as he became the first sitting president to visit the Amazon rainforest on Sunday, touted leaving President-elect Trump the "most significant climate change law."
Why it matters: Biden appeared to acknowledge Trump's pledge to roll back some of his climate initiatives, saying: "I will leave my successor and my country with a strong foundation to build on if they choose to do so. It's true, some may seek to deny or delay the clean energy revolution that's underway in America, but nobody, nobody can reverse it."
The big picture: Biden stopped off in the Manaus, Brazil, area of the rainforest to proclaim the first International Conservation Day ahead of the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, which begins on Monday.
- During his trip to mark his climate legacy, Biden announced that the U.S. has surpassed his goal of providing $11 billion per year in international climate financing.
- Biden said during his visit that his climate law has "positioned us to cut carbon emissions in half by 2030, that's generated $450 billion in new clean energy investments, and that's created hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs and a manufacturing boom as well."
- His message was: "we don't have to choose between the environment and the economy."
Between the lines: Destruction of the Amazon is happening across multiple countries, and it's occurring despite an ambitious but non-binding pledge more than 100 world leaders signed at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow in 2021.
- Climate change is also worsening drought conditions across parts of the Amazon this year, exacerbating wildfires caused by human activities.
- And countries aren't living up to their forest pledge — including the U.S.
More from Axios:
- Joe Biden's legacy on climate and energy
- Trump's decisive win scrambles global climate talks
- Trump's return motivating some countries at UN climate summit
- Where Chris Wright, Trump's energy secretary pick, stands on climate change
Editor's note: Andrew Freedman contributed reporting.
