How EDF is holding the line

When the Trump administration and Congressional leaders mounted their assault on the environment and public health, EDF pushed back.

So far, every bedrock statutory protection remains, but the battle continues.

Block bad nominees

Michael Dourson, a chemical industry hired gun, is nominated to oversee the EPA’s chemical safety office.

Our response: EDF derails Dourson’s nomination by introducing key senators to families of toxic chemical victims. EDF also helps stop the nomination of climate denier Kathleen Hartnett White to head the Council on Environmental Quality.

Save the EPA's budget

President Trump proposes crippling budget cuts at the EPA.

Our response: EDF lobbies Congress, while Moms Clean Air Force, an EDF partner organization with one million members, meets with officials in 20 states. EDF’s campus program Defend Our Future organizes visits to elected officials. The EPA’s budget remains largely intact.

Showing Pruitt the door

EDF opposed Scott Pruitt from the day he was nominated as EPA administrator, and we didn’t stop until we helped oust him 16 months later. Through more than 50 Freedom of Information Act requests, we revealed, among other misdeeds, Pruitt’s direct involvement in scrubbing EPA’s website of 1,100 references to climate change. EDF is now working with equal vigor to counter his successor, Andrew Wheeler, a former coal industry lobbyist.

Defend science

The Trump administration proposes to restrict the EPA’s use of important public health studies when making decisions, thereby suppressing vital evidence supporting strong protections.

Our response: EDF mobilizes a broad coalition of experts, provides expert testimony and files Freedom of Information Act requests to reveal the EPA’s rationale. For now, the proposal is stalled.

Fight smog

The EPA announces it will delay implementing a limit for ground-level ozone, the main ingredient of smog. This puts the health of millions of Americans at risk.

Our response: EDF and allies ask a federal court to block the unlawful delay. The court orders the EPA to implement the standards. As a result, 52 metropolitan areas are under deadline to restore healthy air.

Stand up for clean vehicles

The administration proposes to roll back greenhouse gas standards for cars and exempts super-polluting old diesel truck engines from modern standards.

Our response: EDF files suit and joins 20 state attorneys general to oppose rollbacks on car standards. For trucks, EDF files suit and a judge temporarily blocks the exemption for dirty trucks. The EPA then withdraws it.

Block the coal bailout

Energy Secretary Rick Perry seeks to force power companies to burn coal, while the EPA moves to roll back limits on emissions of greenhouse gases, mercury and arsenic.

Our response: Under pressure from EDF and others, Perry’s plan is shelved. EDF ramps up the fight to defend the Clean Power Plan and the crucial limits on toxic mercury and arsenic from coal-fired power plants.

Stop methane rollbacks

The Trump administration weakens national limits on methane leaks from oil and gas operations on public land, exacerbating climate change.

Our response: EDF helped secure this methane rule, and we’re working hard to defend it. After winning a key victory in Congress to prevent a permanent rollback, we’re defending the measure in court.