EPA Air Pollution Restrictions No Longer Consider Human Cost

The GOP is never beating the death cult allegations. In a move completely antithetical to the agency’s entire purpose, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will no longer factor the monetary benefits to human health when crafting restrictions on air pollutants. 

According to the New York Times, the EPA has historically placed a dollar value on how much regulations on fine particulate matter and ozone would prevent asthma attacks and premature deaths from air pollution. The EPA released a statement to the Times defending the decision. 

“EPA., like the agency always has, is still considering the impacts that PM2.5 and ozone emissions have on human health,” Carolyn Holran, an EPA spokeswoman, wrote. “Not monetizing does not equal not considering or not valuing the human health impact.” 

You know, that EPA statement would hold a lot more weight if the change wasn’t made in tandem with a rule drafted by the EPA to “weaken limits on nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide emissions from combustion turbines used at gas-burning power plants.”

I’m going to let people far smarter than me explain what the particulate matter is and the math used by the previous administration when drafting air pollution regulations. 

From the New York Times:

Fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, refers to particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream. Ozone is a smog-causing gas that forms when nitrogen dioxide and volatile organic compounds are emitted from power plants, factories and vehicles and mix in the air on hot, sunny days.

Long-term exposure to both pollutants is linked to asthma, heart and lung disease, and premature death. Even moderate exposure to PM2.5 can damage the lungs about as much as smoking.

Under the Biden administration, the E.P.A. tightened the amount of PM2.5 that could be emitted by industrial facilities. It estimated that the rule would prevent up to 4,500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays in 2032 alone. For every $1 spent on reducing PM2.5, the agency said, there could be as much as $77 in health benefits.

“The idea that E.P.A. would not consider the public health benefits of its regulations is anathema to the very mission of E.P.A.,” Richard Revesz, the faculty director of the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law, told the Times. 

“If you’re only considering the costs to industry and you’re ignoring the benefits, then you can’t justify any regulations that protect public health, which is the very reason that E.P.A. was set up,” Revesz added. Revesz led the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs under President Joe Biden, so he’s got some fairly informed insight on what this change means. 

I wish I could say it’s insane that the Trump administration is really saying with its whole chest, “Sure, people may die, but how does this impact shareholder value?” But this is who these people have always been. 

You probably don’t need me to tell you that this move is going to have a disproportionate impact on low-income and Black communities. 

Last year, the EPA moved to close its environmental justice offices, which were focused on combating pollution in low-income and Black communities. Throughout the South, poor and minority communities have historically been riddled with petrochemical factories that emit toxic fumes, leading to disproportionate levels of respiratory and heart disease. While yes, this will greatly impact Black people, it will also have an impact on low-income white people, many of whom voted for Trump. This is what happens when an administration puts profits over people. 

So, in addition to no longer taking action to alleviate the disproportionate environmental impact that petrochemical factories place on these communities, the EPA is now moving to potentially exacerbate it. This is one hell of a way to “make America healthy again.” 

SEE ALSO:

EPA Staff Signs “Declaration Of Dissent” Over Trump’s Policies

Several Lawsuits Filed In Louisiana To Combat Environmental Racism

EPA Air Pollution Restrictions No Longer Consider Human Cost was originally published on newsone.com