White House admits delay in key environmental rules
Shortly after taking office, President Biden He pledged to use the full power of the federal government to tackle climate change “with a greater sense of urgency.”
But on Wednesday the Biden administration admitted it would miss some self-imposed deadlines for proposing major environmental rules, sparking concerns about delays among climate advocates. And it could be more vulnerable to legal challenge or even repealed by a future Republican president or Congress, supporters warn.
detail: of White House Office of Management and Budget On Wednesday, we released a semi-annual document outlining our latest regulatory plans across all federal agencies.
Formally unified agendateeth, Environmental Protection Agency will miss the voluntary March deadline to propose greenhouse gas emissions standards for new and existing power plants. The agency currently plans to propose standards by April and finalize them by June 2024.
- EPA officials also conceded they would miss a spring target to finalize tighter limits on soot, a deadly air pollutant. The final rules he expects to be released by August, while the proposed rules are due this month.
- A final rule affirming the EPA’s authority to curb emissions of mercury and other toxic air pollutants from power plant stacks is also delayed. That rule is currently scheduled to be released by March.
- and interior departmentMeanwhile, officials are now aiming to finalize rules covering methane leaks, emissions and burning from oil and gas operations on public lands by September rather than next month. Methane, a greenhouse gas, is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide for its first 20 years in the atmosphere.
“I’d be lying if I said I personally met all the deadlines I’ve set. Mersey Alto,director climate action campaign, a coalition of over a dozen environmental and public health groups. “But the daily delays have a negative impact on our health, the environment and the climate.”
Sam ShankarSenior Vice President, Programs, Environmental Law Firm earth justiceif these rules were issued at the end of Biden’s first term, a future Republican-controlled Congress would: parliamentary review lawThis would allow legislators to repeal the regulation within 60 legislative days of its final decision by a simple majority vote.
“Certainly, we would like to see some of these rules published sooner,” Sankar said. “But it’s imperative that it comes out as soon as possible while still being legally defensible.”
Ask EPA spokesperson for comment Kanya Fire The Unified Agenda “confirms that the EPA is taking important actions to address pollution from the power sector,” the Unified Agenda said in an email, adding that the administration “ensures that all Americans are protected from power plant pollution.” We are committed to advancing the standard so that it can be done,” he added. It harms public health and our economy. ”
white house press secretary Abdullah Hassan “We will continue to use all the tools available to us to advance the clean energy agenda,” President Biden said in an email.
Track Biden’s Overall Progress
Biden has pledged to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions by 50-52% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. on the other hand, Inflation control law If we can lead the country towards a 40% reduction in emissions by the end of 2010, we will take further government action to make up the difference.
To assess the administration’s progress on this front, it’s worth checking out The Washington Post’s Biden environmental action tracker. Juliet Elperin, Brady Dennis When John Myskens Since January 2021, it has been updated regularly to describe new green initiatives for all federal agencies.
Trackers show that the Biden administration added 59 environmental policies and proposed 54 other policies, while overturning the former president’s 85. donald trumpEnvironmental policies and targets of 88 other:
In one of the most politically controversial actions under consideration, Securities and Exchange Commission is working to finalize a landmark proposal that would require all publicly traded companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and the risks they face from climate change.
Republicans in Congress denounced the proposal as “awakened capitalism” and vowed to pursue it rigorously. Gary Genslerthe Democratic chairman of the committee, while environmentalists have hailed the rule as an important step in getting the private sector to confront the economic risks of global warming.
Ultimately, Sankar said the White House must prioritize publishing all outstanding rules this year.
“The administration has given itself a proper set of marching orders,” he said. “And this is the year it really needs to go on.”
George Santos also makes false claims about climate
re-election George Santos (R. But the new member also makes false or misleading claims about his role in the energy industry. Scott Waldman E&E News report.
On the way, talking on a podcast Conservative Political Action ConferenceSantos erroneously claimed to have played a role in developing technology for carbon dioxide capture and storage.
“Please allow our men and women to drill responsibly using the carbon capture technologies that I have helped develop and have helped fund during my career,” he said. said. “I have played a very extensive role in gas and oil in this country.”
Santos also said on the Newsday podcast last summer that he represents goldman sachs At the conference, he rebuked the company for investing in renewable energy.
“Have you ever heard a Goldman Sachs employee attend the world’s largest private equity conference and criticize his employer? Well, I did it,” Santos said. did it in a renewable energy way…and I said, you know, this is a scam.”
Goldman Sachs says Santos never worked there, but that claim is false. Andrew Kaczynski When In stock Reported to CNN.
Brazil’s environment minister says country will become climate change leader
A few days later Luis Inacio Lula da Silva Became president of Brazil and the country’s new environment minister, Marina Silvasaid on Wednesday that Brazil aims to become a leader in the global fight against the climate crisis. Lissandra Paraguassu When peter frontini Reuters report.
The announcement comes as Lula pledged to protect the Amazon rainforest, a natural carbon sink in the face of rampant deforestation and lax environmental regulations under the former president. Jair Bolsonaro.
“Environmental policy was destroyed by the previous administration,” Silva said in his speech. “Climate change policy has been dismantled and Brazil has become an environmental pariah of the world.”
On Wednesday, Silva also announced plans to create a new secretary to oversee an end to illegal deforestation in the country, as well as a climate authority within the Lula government.
EPA Issues Test Order for ‘Forever Chemicals’
of Environmental Protection Agency On Wednesday, it ordered companies to conduct and submit tests on persistent and harmful chemicals used to make plastics.
The test order focuses on a class of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances called trifluoro(trifluoromethyl)oxirane, or PFAS. More commonly known as the “forever chemical,” PFAS do not degrade naturally and are found in community water supplies across the country.
Recipients of test orders provided as part of the EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap include consumer products giants. 3Mannounced last month that it will stop manufacturing these chemicals by the end of 2025.
“PFAS can pose a serious risk to local communities, especially in areas overloaded with pollution, but toxicity data for many of these chemicals are limited or non-existent.” Michal FriedhofEPA Officer Chemical Safety and Pollution Control Office, said in a statement. “Therefore, we are working quickly to establish stronger and more robust data on PFAS to better understand and ultimately mitigate potential risks.”
