Biden pushes climate actions, aims to fundraise in California.

President Biden Announces $600 Million Climate Investment in California

President Joe Biden made a significant announcement during his recent visit to California. Over the course of three days, starting on June 19, he revealed plans for more than $600 million in climate investment. The aim is to support coastal and Great Lakes communities in their fight against climate change.

California holds immense importance for Biden’s reelection campaign in 2024. As part of his trip, he is also expected to raise funds from Silicon Valley and climate donors.

Upon his arrival, Biden wasted no time and visited a coastal community. He delivered a speech at the Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretation Center and Preserve in Palo Alto, highlighting the significance of his “historic climate actions.”

“What we’re seeing here is an amazing success story of how you can work together to make our communities more climate resilient,” Biden said. “Resiliency matters. And I’ve toured many sites across the country that clearly show climate change is an existential threat to humanity.”

Biden emphasized the staggering cost of natural disasters in America, which amounted to $165 billion in damage last year alone. To combat the climate crisis, he signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law in August 2022, allocating $369 billion to environmental and clean energy projects. This investment is the largest in the country’s history.

“I want to emphasize again that we’re taking the most aggressive climate action ever,” Biden stated. His policies focus on reducing reliance on fossil fuels and helping communities withstand the impacts of climate change and extreme weather.

As part of the $600 million investment, the Department of Commerce will provide coastal and Great Lakes communities with funding to develop infrastructure that can defend against sea level rise, tidal flooding, and storm surge.

The Department of Energy will also contribute to protecting the nation’s power grid from extreme weather events. This includes an initial investment of over $67 million in California as part of a $2 billion plan.

During his speech, Biden took the opportunity to criticize Republicans who oppose his climate measures.

“Some of our MAGA Republican friends in Congress…