(Correction: This blog previously referred to a Blue Green Alliance estimate that the Clean Cars rollback would cost 200,000 jobs. That estimate was for the proposed rollback. We have now included the Trump administration’s own analysis of the final rollback, which found it would cost as many as 140,000 job-years.) The legal battle over America’s […]

One of the most disturbing aspects of the new coronavirus crisis is that people already struggling with underlying respiratory conditions seem to be at greater risk. This means that vulnerable communities already bearing the brunt of the health harms from dangerous pollution may suffer even more. Yet the Trump administration has spent the last few […]

This post was coauthored by Katelyn Roedner Sutter, Pablo Garza and Lauren Navarro. A public health emergency is precisely the wrong time to undermine measures meant to improve air quality, address environmental health disparities, or ensure the sustainability of our common resources. In fact, the COVID-19 public health crisis makes it more essential that California […]

The Trump administration is reportedly expanding its dangerous plan — originally proposed by former Administrator Scott Pruitt — to limit the scientific evidence that the agency can consider when establishing public health protections. According to a story in the New York Times today, the new proposal will be even more damaging than Pruitt’s version – […]

(This post was co-authored by EDF intern Laura Supple) The Trump administration’s latest attack on clean air protections may cause the greatest harm to the most vulnerable communities – according to EPA’s own projections. In June, the Trump administration repealed the Clean Power Plan – America’s first and only nationwide limit on carbon pollution from […]

(This post was co-authored by EDF intern Jayne Stevenson) Summer brings sunshine, fun, and outdoor adventures – but unfortunately, it also brings smog that causes serious health problems for many American families. We have made significant progress delivering healthier summer air, but many families still find themselves sidelined by ground-level ozone pollution – commonly called […]

Scientists agree that to maximize our chances of averting the worst impacts of climate change, we must stop adding climate pollution to the atmosphere by soon after mid-century. As one of the world’s most advanced economies, the U.S. must reach that goal no later than 2050 – which means transitioning to a 100% clean economy. […]

(This post was co-written by EDF intern Laura Supple) The Trump administration has finalized a rule that throws out the Clean Power Plan – America’s first and only nationwide limit on carbon pollution from existing power plants – and replaces it with a “do nothing” rule that, by EPA’s own numbers, would actually increase dangerous […]

Co-authored by Laura Supple and Rama Zakaria The Trump administration is expected to soon finalize a rule that will throw out the Clean Power Plan – the first and only nation-wide limit on carbon pollution from existing power plants – and replace it with a “do-nothing” rule. Unlike the common-sense, market-based approach of the Clean […]

The Trump administration just released its updated plan of action for rolling back our some of our most important protections against dangerous climate pollution. In store for this summer: final attacks on crucial climate safeguards that help keep you and your family safe. Right now, the science is calling for dramatically accelerated climate progress. Extreme […]

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler has sent a draft rule that would roll back the Clean Power Plan to the White House for review – a step that suggests the rule is close to being finalized and released. If this final rule looks anything like the hopelessly flawed and inadequate proposal that was released last August, […]

This post was written by EDF attorney Laura Shields  Colorado moved farther down the road toward a cleaner, less-polluting transportation sector today. The Colorado Air Quality Control Commission unanimously voted to move forward with a formal hearing to consider adoption of state Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) standards. The ZEV standards would provide for manufacturers to […]

And what do those sectors need to do to help keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius? In advance of the United Nations Secretary General’s climate summit in September, many countries are vowing to ramp up their Paris agreement commitments to help limit the increase in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius. However, the growing emissions […]

Scientists around the world are telling us, in no uncertain terms, that we – as in humankind — have little time left to avert the worst impacts of climate change. Those include: widespread coastal and riverine inundation, stronger storms and wildfires; new disease vectors; agricultural and other economic disruption. That is the reality and scope […]

The Trump administration’s federal budget proposal for the 2020 fiscal year reaffirmed the White House’s misguided intent to undercut agencies and programs dedicated to protecting public health, the environment, and our climate. Similar its budget proposals of the last two years, the administration targeted EPA in particular for major reductions. In total, the administration proposed […]

Just last week, the Senate confirmed Andrew Wheeler as EPA administrator. His installation signals a broader pivot point in defending EPA safeguards. Over the last two years, the Trump administration’s efforts to categorically suspend crucial safeguards without public notice or comment failed across the board. Looking ahead, Wheeler has almost two years to build on […]

A new study shows that heatwaves will worsen in the future and that the most vulnerable populations will be hit the hardest Human-caused climate change has already increased the frequency and severity of heatwaves across the globe, and new research shows that heatwaves will get even worse as the planet warms further. Scientists have found […]

Sad but true: since he became acting head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Andrew Wheeler has ramped up Scott Pruitt’s relentless attack on public health and environmental safeguards. Wheeler is leading efforts to severely weaken or altogether eliminate meaningful limits on the largest sources of climate pollution – including cars, power plants, and […]

2018 brought with it a torrent of stories that now shape the world we live in and will shape 2019 and years to come. From a disgraced EPA Administrator, to urgent reports on climate change, the year showed how far we’ve come and how much work remains—especially as President Trump and his administration continue to […]

This post was co-authored by EDF Legal Fellow Surbhi Sarang Earlier this year EPA created a pollution loophole that would allow industrial facilities to increase their emissions of toxic air pollutants like benzene, creating a huge risk to public health. This week EDF and a coalition of seven other environmental, environmental justice, and public health […]