CEO Note: Degooberizing American manufacturing

The author contends that American steel producers, such as U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs, are falling behind Asian competitors by abandoning decarbonization plans in favor of coal-intensive production. This failure to adapt to demands for greener steel, exemplified by the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, threatens U.S. market access and causes billions in annual health damages. The text highlights that while a Korean company, Hyundai, is investing $6 billion in low-carbon steel in Louisiana, major U.S. firms continue to rely on polluting methods despite minimal cost increases for end-products like vehicles.

• U.S. steel manufacturers are losing competitiveness against Asian producers who are decarbonizing to maintain market access, particularly in the European Union where the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism now imposes costs based on production pollution.
• Major American steel companies, specifically U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs, are abandoning green steel initiatives and investing in coal-intensive production, whereas the largest potential for green steel scale-up in the U.S. is a $6 billion project by the Korean company Hyundai in Louisiana.
• The transition to green steel would have a negligible impact on consumer costs, increasing the average vehicle price by only 0.66 percent, yet automakers like Ford, GM, Toyota, Hyundai, Honda, and Stellantis continue to use polluting steel.
• Coal-based steel production in the United States results in substantial economic and health burdens, with annual health damages estimated between $6.9 billion and $13.2 billion and broader economic losses of approximately $137 million.
• Cleveland-Cliffs has a history of environmental violations, including a 2019 Clean Water Act violation for discharging cyanide and ammonia nitrogen into Lake Michigan waterways and a 2024 Clean Air Act violation.

APA

Hurowitz, G. (2026). CEO Note: Degooberizing American manufacturing. Mighty Earth. https://mightyearth.org/article/ceo-note-degooberizing-american-manufacturing/

Chicago

Hurowitz, Glenn. CEO Note: Degooberizing American manufacturing. Mighty Earth, 2026. https://mightyearth.org/article/ceo-note-degooberizing-american-manufacturing/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Hurowitz |first1=Glenn |title=CEO Note: Degooberizing American manufacturing |publisher=Mighty Earth |date=30 January 2026 |url=https://mightyearth.org/article/ceo-note-degooberizing-american-manufacturing/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{hurowitz2026ceo, author = {Hurowitz, Glenn}, title = {{CEO Note: Degooberizing American manufacturing}}, publisher = {Mighty Earth}, year = {2026}, month = jan, url = {https://mightyearth.org/article/ceo-note-degooberizing-american-manufacturing/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }