SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
"The pandemic has laid bare entrenched inequality in the United States and those most vulnerable to Covid-19 are often those most at risk from pollution and climate change." (Photo: Kris Krug/flickr/cc)
Lighter Coal Regulations May Mean More Covid-19 Deaths
Addressing emission standards, pollution, and environmental protections are necessities now.
Dec 12, 2020
On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency declined to put in place stricter regulations on coal. This is despite the evolving evidence that air pollution is correlated with worse Covid-19 outcomes.
Ecological studies have shown that even a small increase in exposure to particulate matter of 1 ug/m3 (PM2.5) in the air leads to an 8% increase in Covid-related mortality. A study out of Yale yields similar findings that improved air quality during the quarantine period in China avoided a total of 8,911 NO2-related deaths, 65% of which were from cardiovascular diseases (hypertensive disease, coronary heart disease, and stroke) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema and bronchitis).
The urgency of improving public health could not be more obvious at the present moment where Covid-related deaths near a quarter million at the writing of this article. Yet the present administration has engaged nature in battle with a series of ill-advised policies targeting environmental protections from siding with fossil fuel industry to pulling out of the Paris agreement.
In April 2020, the Trump administration rolled back regulations on automobile emissions even though their own analysis Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule, issued by the EPA and the Department of Transportation, suggested there would be an increase in premature deaths between 444 and 1,000. In 2018, the White House weakened rules on carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants, a move which the EPA estimated (pdf) would cause an additional 1,400 premature deaths annually.
The administration is rolling back more than 100 environmental rules and regulations over four years, 27 of which involve air pollution and emissions. While the courts have overturned a handful of these, the assault on protections is left in place for the many with 84 rollbacks already completed (pdf).
The pandemic has laid bare entrenched inequality in the United States and those most vulnerable to Covid-19 are often those most at risk from pollution and climate change. Studies before the pandemic have shown the effect of pollution on pre-existing lung conditions. Communities already disenfranchised are bearing a disproportionate burden of the disease from exposure, comorbidities, and often from working as essential employees. Poor neighborhoods and communities of color are frequently exposed to higher levels of air pollution than more affluent communities.
Increasingly, people are voicing their concern. According to Associated Press exit polls from this year's election, 70% of Americans are concerned about the effects of the climate crisis.
Our hospitals are at capacity. Covid-19 is a public health emergency immediately and climate change is arguably the most consequential public health crisis of all time. Addressing emission standards, pollution, and environmental protections are not abstract chess moves that may or may not help at some point in the distant future. They are necessities now.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Elizabeth Cerceo
Elizabeth Cerceo, MD, FACP, FHM is associate program director of internal medicine and co-chair of physician engagement at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey.
On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency declined to put in place stricter regulations on coal. This is despite the evolving evidence that air pollution is correlated with worse Covid-19 outcomes.
Ecological studies have shown that even a small increase in exposure to particulate matter of 1 ug/m3 (PM2.5) in the air leads to an 8% increase in Covid-related mortality. A study out of Yale yields similar findings that improved air quality during the quarantine period in China avoided a total of 8,911 NO2-related deaths, 65% of which were from cardiovascular diseases (hypertensive disease, coronary heart disease, and stroke) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema and bronchitis).
The urgency of improving public health could not be more obvious at the present moment where Covid-related deaths near a quarter million at the writing of this article. Yet the present administration has engaged nature in battle with a series of ill-advised policies targeting environmental protections from siding with fossil fuel industry to pulling out of the Paris agreement.
In April 2020, the Trump administration rolled back regulations on automobile emissions even though their own analysis Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule, issued by the EPA and the Department of Transportation, suggested there would be an increase in premature deaths between 444 and 1,000. In 2018, the White House weakened rules on carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants, a move which the EPA estimated (pdf) would cause an additional 1,400 premature deaths annually.
The administration is rolling back more than 100 environmental rules and regulations over four years, 27 of which involve air pollution and emissions. While the courts have overturned a handful of these, the assault on protections is left in place for the many with 84 rollbacks already completed (pdf).
The pandemic has laid bare entrenched inequality in the United States and those most vulnerable to Covid-19 are often those most at risk from pollution and climate change. Studies before the pandemic have shown the effect of pollution on pre-existing lung conditions. Communities already disenfranchised are bearing a disproportionate burden of the disease from exposure, comorbidities, and often from working as essential employees. Poor neighborhoods and communities of color are frequently exposed to higher levels of air pollution than more affluent communities.
Increasingly, people are voicing their concern. According to Associated Press exit polls from this year's election, 70% of Americans are concerned about the effects of the climate crisis.
Our hospitals are at capacity. Covid-19 is a public health emergency immediately and climate change is arguably the most consequential public health crisis of all time. Addressing emission standards, pollution, and environmental protections are not abstract chess moves that may or may not help at some point in the distant future. They are necessities now.
Elizabeth Cerceo
Elizabeth Cerceo, MD, FACP, FHM is associate program director of internal medicine and co-chair of physician engagement at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey.
On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency declined to put in place stricter regulations on coal. This is despite the evolving evidence that air pollution is correlated with worse Covid-19 outcomes.
Ecological studies have shown that even a small increase in exposure to particulate matter of 1 ug/m3 (PM2.5) in the air leads to an 8% increase in Covid-related mortality. A study out of Yale yields similar findings that improved air quality during the quarantine period in China avoided a total of 8,911 NO2-related deaths, 65% of which were from cardiovascular diseases (hypertensive disease, coronary heart disease, and stroke) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema and bronchitis).
The urgency of improving public health could not be more obvious at the present moment where Covid-related deaths near a quarter million at the writing of this article. Yet the present administration has engaged nature in battle with a series of ill-advised policies targeting environmental protections from siding with fossil fuel industry to pulling out of the Paris agreement.
In April 2020, the Trump administration rolled back regulations on automobile emissions even though their own analysis Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule, issued by the EPA and the Department of Transportation, suggested there would be an increase in premature deaths between 444 and 1,000. In 2018, the White House weakened rules on carbon pollution from coal-fired power plants, a move which the EPA estimated (pdf) would cause an additional 1,400 premature deaths annually.
The administration is rolling back more than 100 environmental rules and regulations over four years, 27 of which involve air pollution and emissions. While the courts have overturned a handful of these, the assault on protections is left in place for the many with 84 rollbacks already completed (pdf).
The pandemic has laid bare entrenched inequality in the United States and those most vulnerable to Covid-19 are often those most at risk from pollution and climate change. Studies before the pandemic have shown the effect of pollution on pre-existing lung conditions. Communities already disenfranchised are bearing a disproportionate burden of the disease from exposure, comorbidities, and often from working as essential employees. Poor neighborhoods and communities of color are frequently exposed to higher levels of air pollution than more affluent communities.
Increasingly, people are voicing their concern. According to Associated Press exit polls from this year's election, 70% of Americans are concerned about the effects of the climate crisis.
Our hospitals are at capacity. Covid-19 is a public health emergency immediately and climate change is arguably the most consequential public health crisis of all time. Addressing emission standards, pollution, and environmental protections are not abstract chess moves that may or may not help at some point in the distant future. They are necessities now.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy