Ben Edgerly Walsh, Climate & Energy Program Director for the Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG), released the following statement today in response to the Trump Administration’s proposal to repeal the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) endangerment finding:
“The Trump Administration’s move to dismantle the endangerment finding is exactly what we’d expect to see out of a government of, by and for Big Oil and other billionaires. It is a reckless and dangerous assault on the health and well-being of all Americans; Trump literally sticking his fingers in his ears and yelling “I can’t hear you!” to the climate scientists crying out for action would be a less damaging action than this travesty.
This finding, which affirms that climate pollution threatens public health and welfare, is the very foundation of the federal government’s ability to combat the climate crisis. To deny that is to deny the overwhelming scientific consensus and the lived reality of communities across the country, including here in Vermont, that are already facing the devastating impacts of the climate crisis.
For years, the endangerment finding has served as the legal bedrock for commonsense regulations that are successfully cutting harmful pollution from vehicles and power plants, improving air quality, and driving a transition to a cleaner economy that’s more affordable for everyone. Gutting this finding is a clear attempt to give a free pass to corporate polluters at the expense of our climate, our health, and our future.
Here in Vermont, we are already seeing the effects of a heating planet, from more extreme weather events, to impacts on our agricultural and tourism industries, to health impacts from increasing extreme heat and wildfire smoke. We cannot afford to move backward. The Trump Administration should abandon this catastrophic proposal and instead work to strengthen, not weaken, the critical climate protections that safeguard our communities and our planet – and since that isn’t going to happen, we call on the Scott Administration to finally stand up to Trump and start taking climate action seriously.”