Repeal of EPA’s Endangerment Finding Will Have Devastating Impact

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today revoked its long-standing, science-based conclusion that planet-warming greenhouse gases threaten public health and welfare. Known as the “endangerment finding,” the scientific conclusion gave the EPA the authority and duty to regulate greenhouse gases. If allowed to move forward, the repeal of the endangerment finding will allow the Trump administration to undermine key safeguards that protect clean air, while giving free reign to industries that generate planet-warming emissions. In response, David Arkush, director of Public Citizen’s Climate Program, issued the following statement:

“If left to stand, this action will hamstring the government’s ability to combat the most terrible environmental threat in human history, harming Americans and the world for decades to come.

“Abundant scientific evidence supports the EPA’s prior conclusion that greenhouse gases threaten public health and welfare. And Americans feel the effects of climate change constantly, as we experience more dangerous hurricanes, furnace-like heat domes, walls of water slamming into our children’s summer camps, raging wildfires, and other extreme weather driven by greenhouse gases.”