U.S. Air Pollution Standards Rollback Sparks Environmental Concerns

U.S. air pollution standards

Under the President Biden administration, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) took a hard stance on companies that did not adhere to the minimum air pollution standards. However, under President Trump, the EPA is expected to ease its protections and potentially allow operations to continue running even if they threaten air quality. 

Air Quality Under Biden

When President Biden was in office, the EPA investigated companies for pollution, hazardous waste, and other violations of basic environmental standards. This went hand-in-hand with the former president’s aims to advance the U.S. green transition and support the decarbonization of the U.S. economy. 

However, President Trump has stated plans to change the EPA’s mission to focus less on air, water, and land protection to one that seeks to “lower the cost of buying a car, heating a home and running a business.” This means that several long-running investigations might soon come to an end. 

A March memo from the agency says the EPA enforcement actions will no longer “shut down any stage of energy production,” unless there is an imminent threat to human health. In addition, it halts an initiative that was established to address the disproportionately high levels of pollution facing low-income communities across the U.S. “No consideration… may be given to whether those affected by potential violations constitute minority or low-income populations,” the memo says. 

The EPA also created an email address for the “regulated community” to request a presidential exemption from Clean Air Act requirements. The EPA announcement said that the Clean Air Act allows the president to exempt stationary sources of air pollution from standards under Section 112 if the necessary technology is unavailable and if it “is in the national security interests of the United States to do so.” 

David Uhlmann, the leader of enforcement at the EPA under the Biden administration, said that the memo means that the agency is essentially saying “If companies, especially in the oil and gas sector, break the law, this E.P.A. does not intend to hold them accountable.” In addition, Uhlmann suggested that communities, particularly poor and minority populations, will face greater environmental and health risks under the new approach. 

The EPA was established under the Nixon administration in 1970 to protect the environment and public health. The Trump administration is now assessing the role of the EPA and is expected to provide an updated definition. 

Meanwhile, in March, the Trump administration said it would repeal dozens of U.S. environmental regulations, such as limits on tailpipe and smokestacks pollution, and protections for wetlands. 

Potential Implications

Some scientists have voiced their concerns about the change in the role of the EPA. The U.S. has significantly improved its air quality in recent decades thanks to the EPA protections, but some worry that reducing these protections could lead to new instances of smog and even acid rain. 

Gene Likens, whose experiments helped identify acidic rainwater in the 1960s, said, “I’m very worried that might happen, it’s certainly not impossible that it could happen.” Likens added, “I hope we don’t go back to the old days, so these rollbacks are very alarming… I care about the health of my children and grandchildren, I want them to have clean air to breathe. I care about clean water and clean and healthy soil, I want them to have that too.”

By 1980, the average U.S. rainfall was around 10 times more acidic than normal. This eventually led former President George HW Bush to update the Clean Air Act in 1990 to reduce power plant pollution and target acid rain, which was a huge success. Bush stated, “Every city in America should have clean air… With this legislation, I firmly believe we will.”

A reduction in the controls on emissions and other environmental protections may not have an immediately disastrous effect but could eventually plunge the U.S. back into the 1980s in terms of environmental threats. 

Six Cities with the Worst Air Pollution 

Some cities in the U.S. continue to have much worse levels of air pollution than others. A recent study by IQAir analyzed the fine particulate matter concentration across several U.S. cities and found that Ontario was the worst, followed by Bloomington, Huntington Park, San Bernardino, and Fontana. Glendora was ranked at number eight on the list, meaning that six of the top 10 most-polluted cities are in Southern California. Two other cities in central California are also on the top 10 list – Visalia and Hanford. 

High levels of traffic, as well as shipping and logistics transport in Southern Californian ports, are thought to contribute to this severe pollution. The recent wildfires likely also exacerbated the problem.   

A change in EPA standards could lead these cities, as well as thousands of others across the U.S., to become even more polluted at a time when most developed countries around the world are striving to reduce emissions, improve environmental protections, and undergo a green transition.

Stay In The Know with Shale

While the world transitions, you can count on Shale Magazine to bring me the latest intel and insight. Our reporters uncover the sources and stories you need to know in the worlds of finance, sustainability, and investment.

Subscribe to Shale Magazine to stay informed about the happenings that impact your world. Or listen to our critically acclaimed podcast, Energy Mixx Radio Show, where we interview some of the most interesting people, thought leaders, and influencers in the wide world of energy.