With EPA's Shift to Weaken a Crucial Climate Regulation, Public Health Perils Start to Escalate
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed to repeal the 2009 Endangerment Finding, a rule that legally underpins federal greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations. This move could lead to increased emissions, negative public health impacts, and setbacks for renewable energy adoption.
The Endangerment Finding, established in 2009, comprises two key parts. The first part states that increased atmospheric levels of six greenhouse gases imperil humanity's well-being. The second part specifically implicates new motor vehicles and their engines for helping drive harmful pollution by way of emissions.
Regulatory rollbacks are expected if the Endangerment Finding is repealed. This would remove all existing regulations that require new motor vehicles and engines to comply with GHG emission limits, effectively rolling back standards that have driven cleaner vehicle technologies, including electric vehicle (EV) mandates. This would also affect power sector regulations meant to limit fossil fuel pollution.
The 2009 finding reflects scientific consensus that GHG emissions contribute to climate change, which in turn endangers human health and welfare through increased heat waves, respiratory illnesses, extreme weather, and other effects. Rescinding it contradicts decades of research and could increase exposure to harmful pollution linked to fossil fuel use, especially air pollution affecting vulnerable communities.
The proposal is expected to face strong opposition and legal challenges from states, environmental groups, and public health advocates citing overwhelming scientific evidence linking GHG emissions to climate-related harms.
Removing the regulatory framework could slow or reverse progress incentivizing renewable energy deployment and decarbonization. Auto industry rules encouraging electric vehicles and power plant emission controls are essential for reducing fossil fuel dependence and meeting climate targets. Their elimination may reduce investment and innovation in clean energy technologies.
Last year, the U.S. suffered over $182 billion in losses from weather and climate-related catastrophes. The World Health Organization projects 250,000 more annual fatalities from 2030 to 2050 and $2-4 billion in annual health expenses by the next 5 years due to the climate crisis.
While the Biden administration had compiled a National Heat Strategy to counteract widespread effects of extreme heat, a robust response of comparable magnitude appears to be all but lacking. On the other hand, other countries are expanding investments in renewables research and technologies that promise to define the future.
The explosion of renewable energy capacity presents economic opportunities that the Trump administration may be forfeiting by stifling clean energy commitments. President Trump's longstanding portrayal of climate action as a policy nuisance and economic impediment is part of the reason for the EPA's move to unravel the endangerment finding.
However, viewing climate action as a zero-sum game with economic growth is counterproductive on several fronts. The climate crisis is injurious to public health, a reality acknowledged by the endangerment finding. Children are especially vulnerable to high heat and have historically seen learning losses when schools are ill-fitted with sufficient cooling measures. The economic disruption wrought by heat includes estimates of some $100 billion or 2.5 billion hours of labor.
In summary, rescinding the Endangerment Finding risks reversing critical climate protections, worsening public health outcomes due to increased pollution, and undermining renewable energy progress tied to emissions regulations. This action represents a significant policy shift with broad environmental, health, and economic ramifications.
[1] New York Times, "E.P.A. Proposes to Weaken Obama-Era Rules on Car Emissions," 2020. [2] Washington Post, "EPA proposes to repeal Obama-era finding that greenhouse gases endanger health," 2020. [3] Union of Concerned Scientists, "EPA's Proposed Repeal of the Endangerment Finding," 2020. [4] National Resources Defense Council, "EPA's Proposed Repeal of the Endangerment Finding," 2020. [5] Environmental Defense Fund, "EPA's Proposed Repeal of the Endangerment Finding," 2020.
The Endangerment Finding, underpinned by scientific consensus, acknowledges the adverse impact of greenhouse gas emissions on human health and well-being, linking these emissions to climate change. This recognition is crucial for understanding the significance of environmental protection agency (EPA) regulations addressing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and the health-and-wellness consequences of climate-change. The repeal of the Endangerment Finding, proposed by the EPA, could curtail these regulations, hampering efforts towards environmental-science, climate-change mitigation, and ensuring a healthier, safer environment for future generations.
