EPA Seeks to Undermine Nation’s Clean Air, Allowing Automakers to Sell Polluting Cars
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The EPA on Thursday announced it would delay the emission standards for light-and medium-duty vehicles for two years, allowing vehicles made before model year 2029 to continue to emit pollutants like nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and hydrocarbons. The delay will lead to a massive increase in pollution from light vehicles, resulting in preventable illnesses and premature deaths. In response, Deanna Noël, deputy director with Public Citizen’s Climate Program, issued the following statement:
“In its latest unconscionable act, Trump’s EPA looked at a rule intended to protect public health from toxic tailpipe pollutants while saving tens of thousands of lives, and decided it could wait. The decision will not just cost lives; it will cost working-class people more money in medical bills, more missed days of work, and more years chained to volatile gas prices.
“Working families are already stretched thin. Everything from groceries to home insurance to gas is getting more expensive, with no end in sight. Delaying commonsense emissions standards will only make communities sicker and send costs higher. The EPA’s entire reason for existing is to protect public health and the environment. Yet under this administration, it has been weaponized to serve corporate interests over the American public, no matter the cost.”