Contact: Ginny Roscamp, Deputy Press Secretary, Sierra Club, ginny.roscamp@sierraclub.org
Update: On March 6, just two days after these tariffs went into effect, Trump adjusted the tariffs to exclude goods that comply with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Those exemptions last until April 2, when reciprocal tariffs against countries with import taxes on US goods are slated to begin.
WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. President Donald Trump’s additional 25% tariffs on American importers of products from Canada and Mexico (except Canadian energy products, which will face a 10% tariff), are slated to go into effect tomorrow, Tuesday, March 4. The tariffs, first introduced in early February, were paused for a month as the countries attempt to address Trump’s concerns on border security and fentanyl (which are unrelated to tariffs).
An additional 10% tariff on American importers of products from China is already in effect. Other tariffs expected in the coming weeks include an additional 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports to the U.S., and reciprocal tariffs against importers of products from several other countries including the EU, India, and China. President Trump also said in February he would consider tariffs on other imports including cars, pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.
In response, Ben Jealous, Executive Director at the Sierra Club, issued the following statement:
“President Trump’s belief that tariffs alone will help revitalize American manufacturing is simply not rooted in basic economics. What’s more, his chaotic approach to tariffs, wielding them for objectives like border security or to encroach on Canadian sovereignty, undermines their legitimate use as a tool for responsible trade policy.
A strategic approach to using tariffs to reinvigorate U.S. industry would include strong domestic investments in manufacturing and the clean energy economy, ensuring trade partners abide by the same high environmental and labor standards as American companies, and plans to continue sourcing critical materials that we don’t make enough of, like aluminum for cars and solar panels, from our closest allies.”
BACKGROUND
In February, Sierra Club sent a letter to President Trump calling for the steel tariff to be coupled with an innovation agenda for the U.S. steel industry that includes domestic investments, research and development, tariffs on foreign pollution, and markets for clean American steel.
The Sierra Club’s Industrial Transformation campaign works on new approaches to industrial policy that replaces handouts for corporate polluters with protections for people and the planet through comprehensive solutions that create good-paying, clean manufacturing jobs, cut industrial pollution, and build climate resilience for those hardest hit by the fossil fuel economy. Learn more at https://www.sierraclub.org/industrial-transformation.
Read more from the Sierra Club: Trump’s Tariffs Will Harm Working Families Without Innovative Strategies To Revive American Manufacturing
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.