Democratic senators launch inquiry into EPA’s repeal of key air pollution enforcement measure | US Environmental Protection Agency
More than three dozen Democratic senators have launched an independent investigation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) following a major change in the way it measures the health benefits of reducing air pollution, seen as a major hurdle to U.S. efforts to combat the climate crisis.
In its regulatory impact analysis, the EPA said it would stop assigning a monetary value to health benefits associated with regulations on fine particulate matter and ozone. The agency argued that the forecasts contained too much uncertainty.
The EPA previously put a dollar figure on the benefits of cleaner air, factoring in outcomes such as fewer premature deaths and reduced illnesses, including asthma attacks.
The hazard finding in 2009 determined that greenhouse gases threaten public health and welfare and therefore should be controlled by the EPA. Authorities struck down that law on Thursday, removing the legal basis that allows the government to control pollution that is warming the planet.
Senators criticized the updated policy as “particularly troubling” and said its repeal “destroys this framework and leads to a failure to faithfully carry out EPA’s statutory authority to protect human health,” according to a letter sent to the EPA on Thursday.
The effort is being led by Sheldon Whitehouse, the ranking member of the Senate environment and public works committee. Lawmakers asked the EPA to provide documents and details explaining how it reached the decision by Feb. 26.
Senate Democrats are trying to learn the reasoning behind the EPA’s move; What factors the agency will consider when creating Clean Air Act rules; whether it is now considering measuring the health effects of other pollutants; and whether it consulted with any outside parties, including the secretary of health and human services, the U.S. surgeon general, or public health experts.
“It’s literally zero surprise that climate deniers know they’re not presenting the real science they’ve cherry-picked,” Whitehouse said. wrote to x In response to an article suggesting the Trump administration is ignoring the recommendations of scientists. “Their nonsense never came true; rather, it was part of a fraudulent propaganda campaign designed to protect fossil fuel’s ‘non-polluting’ business model.”
This cancellation is part of Trump’s sweeping attacks on US climate policy. He said Thursday that the finding of endangerment forms the “foundation of the new green scam.” Since returning to office last January, the Trump administration has taken aggressive steps to roll back pollution regulations and encourage fossil fuel production. Critics argue that this anti-environment agenda benefits the president’s fossil fuel industry donors.
Trump’s decision was widely condemned by climate scientists and advocates focused on environmental protection, public health and economic justice. Asked Thursday to address environmental concerns about the new rule, Trump said, “Don’t worry about it.”
“This has nothing to do with public health,” he said of the danger finding. “This is all a hoax, a giant hoax.”
