Less than one day into his first term as the most powerful man on the planet and US President Joe Biden had already signed no less than 17 executive actions with the aim of overturning some of the most controversial policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump. But will any of these, or indeed any of Biden’s plans for the next four years, have any positive impact on non-human animals?

It would be something of an understatement to say that Joseph R. Biden, Jr., as of Wednesday the 46th president of the United States, has a huge job on his hands. Together with Vice President Kamala Harris and the rest of his cabinet, the Biden administration has inherited a deeply divided country with opinions polarised to the extreme right and left of the political spectrum, and while politicians and politicised citizens push and pull against one another to bring about change according to wildly differing visions, there are a great many who are caught in the crossfire.

Former President Donald Trump, who left office following a short but intensely ugly period of civil unrest that he is accused of inciting and which will forever be a blight on American democracy, made during his time in office many decisions that Biden now looks set on tearing down. 

In less than 24 hours as president, Biden has signed 17 executive actions, including three legally-binding executive orders, countering Trump decisions on climate change, the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and immigration. From non-US families torn apart when entering the country, to chronic inaction in the face of irreversible climate change, the victims of Trump’s decisions are immeasurable. But what of non-human animals - will any of the sentient beings with whom we share this planet benefit from Biden’s reversals or any of his campaign promises?

The executive orders - which give presidents the power to create unilateral directives unless overturned by a court - are a good place to start because with them Biden has signalled to the world both the focus and force of his agenda. The orders given were to mandate masks on federal property; provide greater support to underserved communities, and reaffirm America’s place within the Paris climate accord.

The US re-entering the agreement between sovereign nations to meet environmental targets in an effort to mitigate climate change would appear to have the most to do with all sentient life on earth. Trump of course stated his intention to withdraw the US from the accord in 2017, but it only came into effect in November this year, one day after the election that saw him ousted from power. With global temperatures on the rise and natural animal habitats predicted to be changed drastically in a relatively short period of time in environmental terms, limiting the devastating effects of climate change is relevant to all of us, human and non-human alike.

According to the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), climate change has the potential to cause extinctions in a majority of the world’s ecosystems, with a species’ survival depending on its ability to adapt or move between regions. Environmental pressures will favour more highly mobile species of both plants and animals:

“WWF scientists have estimated that most species on this planet (including plants) will have to ‘move’ faster than 1,000 metres per year if they are to keep within the climate zone which they need for survival. Many species will not be able to redistribute themselves fast enough to keep up with the coming changes. These species, as far as we know given present knowledge, may well become extinct.”

Even animals considered to be very mobile and able to range thousands of miles are under threat, such as in the case of whales, dolphins and other cetaceans. In Ice Breaker - push the boundaries for whales, the WWF concludes:

“It is clear from both projections that global warming will have significant impacts on the whales of the Southern Ocean. Whales are highly mobile top-predators, capable of travelling great distances and remembering their way back to preferred foraging grounds. This memory provides some resilience to adapt to fluctuating climate and ocean conditions from year to year. 

“However, the current magnitude of the projected changes in ice and ocean circulation, and the rate in which that change is predicted to occur, is unprecedented, particularly when it is considered next to the time a species needs to react and adapt to altered conditions.”

The oceans, of course, are particularly sensitive to rising temperatures, with the polar ice caps melting causing rising sea levels. The knock-on effect is an encroachment on in-land habitats starting with those closest to seas and rivers, some of the most biologically diverse places above sea level. Untold numbers of species of birds, mammals, reptiles and insects will have to stay ahead of rising sea levels and changing weather patterns or cease to exist.

The US as one of the world’s leading industrialised nations is also one of the greatest emitters of carbon and contributors to climate change. With the US set to realign with global targets on reducing emissions and other factors, it is a strong signal to other countries that the time to agree to change and stick to their commitments is now. While the continued existence of non-human animal species may not be the driving force behind this imperative, there is growing evidence to suggest that the loss of certain species due to human-caused climate change could well mean peril for humanity.

According to a long-term study by researchers at the University of Ottowa and published in February last year in the journal Science, which looked at more than 60 bee species in North America and Europe, the chances of a population of bumblebees surviving in any given place has dropped by an average of 30% or more due to the effects of climate change. Few people realise how important bumblebees are as the best pollinators in wild landscapes and the most effective for important crops such as tomato, squash and berries.

Lead author of the study, Peter Soroye, said in a statement: "Our results show that we face a future with many less bumblebees and much less diversity, both in the outdoors and on our plates."

Other executive actions signed by Biden also feed into the climate agenda, such as directing federal agencies to rethink vehicle fuel and emissions standards and cancelling permits for the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, breaking down policies from President Trump. However, executive actions carry less weight as they provide no additional legal powers, but are still seen by many as ‘threats to order’ and strong indications of the direction of policy. Actions tackling draconian immigration procedures and raising the level of support for less privileged sections of society are undoubtedly a step in the right direction, and should they become more affirmative in a legislative sense, will keep the Biden administration busy and focused on other very worthy matters not related to non-humans.

But what of direct policies and laws concerning animals? In November 2019, Trump signed a bipartisan bill bringing into force the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act (PACT) which made acts of cruelty to animals a federal crime punishable by sentences of up to seven years in prison. Other bills including the Big Cat Public Safety Act, the Sharkfin Sales Elimination Act, the Horseracing Integrity Act, and the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act are all still finding their way through Congress, and with considerable bipartisan support, there is no indication that Biden’s administration will be getting in the way of these any time soon.

PACT would seem to be one of the few good things the Trump team did for animals, with this blog post from the Humane Society of the United States - State of the animals under the Trump administration: a year of highs and lows - outlining the story as of February 2020. Lowlights include the weakening of the Endangered Species Act and a Department of Agriculture cut back that could mean puppy mills and roadside zoos risk going unchecked.

That’s everything Trump did wrong, but what will Biden do right now that he’s at the helm? It’s too early to tell whether Biden will be championing policies that tackle any of the issues detailed above, or what he’ll work on once the dust of his inauguration has settled, but there is optimism. Both Biden and Harris have a long history of supporting legislation concerning animals. According to the ASPCA, both Biden and Harris have been strong advocates for animals during their time in Congress, with the now VP a sponsor of the HEART Act that aims to make lives easier for dogs seized after animal fighting busts by federal authorities.

Sara Amundson, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund, said this of Biden and Harris in another blog post entitled A time of hope for animals:

“During his time as a U.S. Senator, Biden supported dozens of animal welfare reforms, including dolphin-safe labelling on cans of tuna and legislation asking Canada to end its bloody seal hunt. He authored legislation to end canned hunting—the practice of trophy hunting wild animals in enclosures with nowhere to run—and voted to stop horse slaughter in the United States by prohibiting the use of taxpayer dollars to fund U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection and approval of meat at horse slaughterhouses. As Senator, Biden also worked to prohibit the use in research of dogs and cats obtained by Class B dealers through random sources and to end animal fighting and federal subsidies for fur.

“Harris, too, has a strong record on animal issues. When she was attorney general of California, we teamed up with her on at least a dozen animal protection cases, including beating back an NRA-backed lawsuit that sought to overturn a new California state law banning intrastate trade of ivory and rhino horn in 2016. Harris’ office also successfully defended California’s Prop 2, a law ending the cruel cage confinement of egg-laying hens, multiple times, and successfully defended California’s groundbreaking law banning force-fed foie gras sales.”

The hope, therefore, is real, with several prominent US animal organisations signalling optimism with the change of power. But it’s not all rosy, as politics so rarely is. According to PETA, Biden’s secretary of agriculture Tom Vilsack is less than an ideal choice when it comes to protecting animals, due in no small part to his corporate interests in the dairy industry and handling of the U.S. Department for Agriculture under President Obama for whom he held the same position:

“Under Vilsack, the USDA consistently prioritized the commercial interests of animal-exploiting businesses over taking meaningful action to stop the blatant mistreatment of animals. This dereliction of duty is why PETA and animal rights proponents across the country consider his tenure under Obama to have been disastrous.”

The Guardian has also seen fit to highlight the many failings of Vilsack and his apparent disdain for rural and minority farmers in favour of large industrialised dairy monopolies, and of course the knock-on effect that has on farmed animals.

Aside from Biden’s signalled commitment to tackling climate justice issues, there is little that he has so far signed his name to that tells us much about what the next four years will look like for animals, or more if he should win a second term. From a purely animal rights perspective, without a vegan president, we’re very unlikely to see the abolishment of slaughter and all animal exploitation. But keeping our expectations for the next four or eight years realistic, and on the balance of the above including his previous track record in Congress, and by the very nature of Republican versus Democrat approaches to a range of policies concerning the regulation of agriculture, hunting and conservation, the signs are at least somewhat more positive than under Trump.

Andrew Gough is Media and Investigations Manager for Surge.

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