It appears to be like like the subsequent EPA head will probably be Lee Zeldin, a former New York Congressman and failed gubernatorial candidate, and he’s already promising coverage strikes that may make the air dirtier and improve well being and gas prices for Individuals.
The nominee doesn’t have a very intensive environmental background, with out a variety of particular advocacy on environmental subjects.
In consequence, varied environmental safety organizations have launched statements stating his poor document on environmental laws previously and expressing concern at his probably harmful rollbacks to return. In 2020, whereas he was in Congress, he acquired the worst environmental rating out of the whole New York congressional delegation.
Estimations of the probability of those harmful actions may be knowledgeable by the interval between 2017-2021, which was marked by extreme corruption by two EPA heads with deep ties to the oil & fuel and coal industries.
The primary of these EPA heads, Scott Pruitt, gained prominence by suing the EPA to cease clear air, and in his tenure ended up being so corrupt that he was pressured to resign – fairly a feat provided that administration’s over 3,700 conflicts of curiosity.
The second, Andrew Wheeler, was a coal lobbyist who tried to orchestrate a $70 billion bailout for the coal business and confirmed unimaginable ignorance and lying when discussing the state of his personal company’s rules.
What we do find out about Zeldin’s plans have been introduced this morning, when he famous to the media that he needs to drag again on the EPA rules of the final 4 years.
Whereas we don’t know what particular rules he intends to focus on, it’s probably that there could be sweeping and/or scattershot actions to scale back the progress of the final 4 years. Laws carried out by the EPA underneath President Biden will save Individuals $250B/yr in well being and power prices and save 200k lives in whole.
Rolling again these rules, as Zeldin has mentioned he needs to do, would price Individuals cash within the type of larger well being and gas prices, and would trigger extra dying.
The rationale these rollbacks would trigger extra dying and better prices is as a result of they’d improve air air pollution, which is a significant driver of dying and illness and a significant drain on financial productiveness. The rollbacks would additionally improve prices as a result of the focused rules are centered on effectivity, and lowering effectivity means larger power prices for the nation in whole.
We additionally know that Zeldin has acquired an identical sum of money from the oil & fuel business as Trump’s first corrupt EPA choose. Zeldin has acquired $269,608 in lifetime political bribes from the Oil & Fuel business – not his largest chunk of donations when sorted by business, however nonetheless important. That is just like the cost on corrupt oil & fuel stooge Scott Pruitt, who earned round $300k in bribes from oil & fuel for his work to advance soiled air previous to his appointment as chief saboteur of the EPA.
In alternate for these comparatively low pricetags, the richest and most harmful business within the historical past of the world – which receives over $700 billion in subsidies yearly within the US alone – acquired important boosts from harmful actions on the company that’s tasked with conserving the air you breathe clear.
Alongside his statements at this time, Zeldin additionally mentioned that can make these rollbacks “whereas defending entry to scrub air and water,” however it stays to be seen how that’s attainable. On condition that the precise coverage actions he has already prompt are extremely harmful to scrub air, this specific quote rings as if it could be unfaithful. He additionally mentioned one thing about synthetic intelligence, which it’s unclear what the EPA has something to do with (until he was referring to doing one thing in regards to the large pointless power use from the sector, however that appears unlikely).
Zeldin mentioned that he needs to make sure US “power dominance,” which is unlikely to occur with any technique that focuses away from the applied sciences of the longer term. The EPA’s actions of the final 4 years, and President Biden’s actions as a complete, have all coalesced round a technique of bringing EV and battery manufacturing to the US in order that the US may be prepared to supply the merchandise of the longer term.
Mr. Trump, in distinction, is already in search of to roll again the insurance policies which have efficiently led to a whole lot of billions in funding and a whole lot of 1000’s of jobs in inexperienced business, regardless of him being unaware of what these insurance policies are within the first place.
Whereas in Congress, Zeldin voted in opposition to the Inflation Discount Act, the invoice that introduced these jobs and billions in funding to the US. However in yet one more piece of Orwellian doublespeak, Zeldin mentioned at this time that he needs to “carry again American jobs to the auto business,” regardless of it being clear that he and Mr. Trump each wish to roll again insurance policies which have introduced again American jobs to the auto business.
All that mentioned, Zeldin additionally was a member of a bipartisan “local weather options caucus” in 2016, and voted in opposition to a republican modification to slash EPA funding in 2020. So it’s not all unhealthy, it’s simply 86% unhealthy.
And there’s yet another silver lining right here. Earlier this yr, the “Supreme” Court docket stupidly opined that authorities companies needs to be restrained of their capability to do their jobs when it eradicated one thing referred to as the Chevron doctrine.
You possibly can learn extra about that right here, however briefly, the opinion would make it more durable for EPA to vary rules going ahead. So Zeldin might need his work reduce out for him, as he’ll probably must combat in opposition to the scientists at his personal company and the courts to implement the dirty-air insurance policies that he has already indicated he needs to implement.
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