Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced plans to overturn the “endangerment finding,” which, for 16 years, has been the foundation of regulation under the Clean Air Act to combat climate change. That finding has been the basis for requiring oil and gas facilities, fossil fuel-fired power plants, automakers, and other major sources of greenhouse gases (GHGs) to reduce their emissions. The EPA is also expected to propose rescinding pollution standards for passenger cars and trucks and heavy-duty vehicles.
In response, Shannon Baker-Branstetter, senior director of Domestic Climate at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:
Today, the Trump administration is relinquishing all responsibility to address the climate crisis and taking actions that will limit the innovation of the American auto industry. This will leave autoworkers without jobs and drivers with higher gasoline costs, as the climate crisis destroys homes and businesses, making Americans sicker, and increasing insurance costs.
Abandoning all efforts to address climate change is not in the best interest of anyone but the fossil fuel industry, which has made trillions of dollars over the last 50 years and has shown that if unchecked, it will pursue profits at any cost, even if that destroys the American way of life. Fossil fuel companies will continue practices that strip public lands of their majesty, pollute our air and water, and accelerate the pace of extreme heat, deep freezes, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires that cost billions of dollars and thousands of American lives.
Now, American families and businesses, as well as states and local governments, are on their own to deal with it. And they have fewer tools and resources thanks to congressional Republicans’ budget bill, President Trump’s executive orders, and a more powerful fossil fuel industry.
For more information, or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected].