system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How did climate change and conservation become such a political issue?

Shouldn't the environment be something everyone cares about?
gpt
Unlike other "scientific debates" the impacts of climate change are heavily dispersed, unequal, and most importantly, methods to reduce the rate of climate change are extraordinarily expensive. Major oil corporations still employ hundreds of thousands of workers and have revenues that are larger than many countries. Policies that curb emissions, place quotas or enforce regulatory plans cost those firms, and a credible argument could be made that they also cost jobs.

Politicians in states where many of these jobs are located (Texas, Oklahoma) need to serve their constituents to be reelected and that means protecting fossil fuels. Politicians in New York or Oregon don't have the same priorities, and thus the political debate. 

In contrast, anti-science movements such as the anti-vaccine groups not only lack scientific studies and money on their side, but vaccines also protect people in every state. There aren't enough anti-vaxxers voting. 

Tl;dr It isn't about climate change per se, it's about politicians doing more or less what their constituents believe is necessary to protect their economy. If that means denying science to feel better about it, then so be it.