Today, the White House reportedly announced that this Thursday, the EPA plans to rescind the endangerment finding, the science-backed determination that climate pollution threatens Americans’ health and safety. The decision will roll back vehicle pollution standards built on that finding and threatens carbon pollution standards for coal and gas power plants. Together, these actions will raise costs for drivers, worsen air pollution nationwide, and put public health at greater risk. In response, Evergreen Action Executive Director Lena Moffitt released the following statement:

“Once again, Donald Trump is choosing corporate polluter profits over the health and wallets of the American people. This decision will dismantle vehicle pollution standards and threaten carbon pollution standards for dirty coal and gas plants, locking in higher fuel and maintenance costs for drivers, dirtier air in our communities, and more preventable disease and deaths. The only people celebrating it are the corporations that paid for it. Families already struggling with the cost of living will be left with less efficient vehicles that are more expensive to fuel, maintain, and repair, while communities that have been forced to breathe toxic air from polluting plants for decades are once again under attack. 

“The EPA exists for one reason: to protect human health and the environment. But under Trump and Administrator Zeldin, it’s become a protection racket for their Big Oil allies. This administration is proudly ignoring mountains of scientific evidence showing climate pollution is fueling deadly floods, wildfires, and extreme weather—just so fossil fuel companies can wring out a few more dollars in profits. Americans will pay the price with higher bills, more climate catastrophes, and more lives lost. And to what end? To serve a morally bankrupt agenda designed to drain every last cent from working families’ wallets so people like Trump and the fossil fuel CEOs who funded his campaign can hoard even more wealth.”

To speak with a policy expert on the impacts of rescinding the endangerment finding on vehicle pollution standards or standards limiting carbon pollution from coal and gas plants, please contact Evergreen Action Communications Director Seth Nelson at seth@evergreenaction.com.

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