The Trump Administration's Solar Energy Tariff

The Trump Administration’s Solar Energy Tariff

This week President Trump announced the United States would impose steep tariffs on foreign solar products in an attempt to decrease competition for domestic goods of the same industry. This move, Trump claims, will help the American economy, however, many experts are speculating that it will damage the American solar industry and economy in the long term. I agree that this will hurt not only the solar industry in the United States, but is also daunting to other forms of alternative energy such as, wind power, hydropower, and even nuclear. Short term effects will see a positive effect on American companies as solar companies will more or less be forced to buy American products, increasing the overall economy, but the negative effects will be less noticeable in the stock market and will affect those individual workers in the solar industry.  

            Many solar energy companies in the United States have been expecting a tariff and have been stockpiling their materials, however, this ration will only last so long before the price of solar products increases dramatically. Solar companies are left with few options: pay the tariff, switch to expensive American products, or default from the industry. The last option is perhaps the greatest concern to someone who views this policy in a long-term sense, as this could mean a fraction of the 260,000 jobs in the U.S. solar energy industry vanishing. And job loss is not the only concern, for we could even see the loss of the industry all together if American companies are unable to perform with the steep tariff in place.

            While solar energy is not the most efficient of sustainable forms of alternative energy, it does not have the negative stigma of warfare attached to it like nuclear energy has. Solar energy’s ability to be used on cropland, deserts, and rooftops allows it to be much more versatile than wind or hydro energy, which means that it is more accessible to the average American. I believe that while the solution to the energy crisis does not lie solely in solar power, it is important for typical Americans (and citizens across the world) to become conscious of alternative energy, and what better way to start than by participating first-hand and owning solar panels. Trump’s new tariff on imported solar materials will only increase the price and steer more and more Americans away from adopting their own “sustainable” form of energy for themselves, for one of the biggest obstacles of many potential solar owners is the price tag. This has largely been combated with generous government subsidies, especially in larger uses that utilize cropland or dessert ground, but these subsidies can only cover so much of the cost and have only persuaded a portion of potential solar users into converting their land or rooftop space to solar. Even then, there is a sense of duty and responsibility to the environment associated with adopting solar energy.

            Let’s be honest with ourselves; solar energy is not the answer to the energy crisis. It takes up too much space and does not produce nearly enough energy to keep up with the ever-increasing demand for power the world has. And yes, the sun does not shine all the time. This tariff is daunting because it leads one to believe that wind or hydro power will be next, and ultimately dwindling the United States’ affiliation to “clean” energy. The world’s supply of coal and oil will run out eventually and probably sooner than we think, but the Trump administration will not be in charge then, nor will they have to bear the responsibility of that happening. All that matters now, is stimulating the American economy in the short term and credit-claiming for it in order to seek re-election. The push for alternative energy is slowing, due in large part to the federal government. It is up to the people to begin researching, investing, building, and simply educating ourselves on alternative energy before the next tariff is placed on foreign products that further decreases the accessibility of that form of energy. In my opinion, the most logical step is a push towards nuclear energy. The potential for nuclear warfare aside, the energy is much cleaner than oil and coal, in fact its only emission is water vapor. With the Trump administration’s willingness to place business over the environment, the time is now to act on a source of sustainable energy before the next one is embargoed out of existence.

Ryan Lorig