United States: According a news report in the BBC News website, President of the United States, Donald Trump has signed an executive order rescinding the initiatives that were undertaken during his predecessor, Barack Obama’s tenure, which aimed at curbing climate change. Obama had then said that climate change was “real and cannot be ignored”.

The Energy Independence Executive Order, the report said, revokes more than half a dozen measures enacted by the former president, and encourages the use of fossil fuels. The Clean Power Plan initiative, which required states to cut down carbon emissions to meet the country’s commitments under the Paris accord, was also repealed, added the report.

While signing the order, the president reportedly said that this would put an end to the “war on coal”. “With today’s executive action I am taking historic steps to lift the restrictions on American energy, to reverse government intrusion and to cancel job-killing regulations,” President Trump was quoted as saying by the report.

Business groups have welcomed the move, even as environmental campaigners have expressed their displeasure against it.