The announcements cover 31 health protections, including standards on mercury, soot, and traffic pollution as well as the reconsideration of a decade-old, evidence-based conclusion that carbon dioxide, methane, and four other climate-warming pollutants endanger human health and welfare.
In response to these announcements, EEN President & CEO Rev. Dr. Jessica Moerman issued the following statement--
Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! (Deuteronomy 30:19, NLT)
"As evangelical Christians, we take seriously our biblical mandates to defend the life of all God’s children, both born and unborn, and protect God’s creation.
“The EPA has a similar mission to protect human health and the environment.
“In over five decades of work, Republican and Democratic administrations have faithfully advanced this mission, delivering cleaner air and water resulting in millions of American lives saved.
"While we have not always agreed on everything, EEN has worked productively with the EPA on our shared commitment to defend the health of our children.
“This includes advancing critical pollution safeguards that have reduced levels of mercury, a dangerous neurotoxin that harms the brain development of unborn children and lowers IQs, by over 90%; cut levels of microscopic particulate matter (PM2.5) and soot from traffic and power plant emissions that cause asthma, dementia, and poor birth outcomes like lower birth weights, pre-term birth, and stillbirth; lowered carbon pollution that is fueling more extreme weather and making our communities less safe, as recently seen in Western North Carolina and Los Angeles; and cut wasteful methane emissions and associated harmful gases that medical research links to brain and spinal cord birth defects in our babies and cancer in adults.
"Although we have made incredible gains due to the Clean Air Act and the vital work of the EPA, the American Lung Association finds that nearly 40% of Americans, representing 131.2 million people, still live in areas with unhealthy air.
“As pro-life Christians, we will not rest until all God’s children are free from the burden of pollution and can reach their full God-given potential.
"While current EPA leaders are doing great work responding to the needs of Western North Carolina, Los Angeles, and East Palestine, their plans to eliminate these successful and cost-effective pollution safeguards amount to a “pollution first” agenda that will result in the waste of taxpayer dollars on lengthy litigation and will ultimately fail to pass an evidence-based process.
“Constructive discussions on evidence-based reforms should be welcomed by all corners.
“However, in its zeal to reform, the EPA’s announced plan does not live up to its mission and ignores crucial moral mandates, putting the health and lives of our children at risk.
“We encourage the EPA to keep its focus on furthering mission-critical work to protect human health and the environment instead of undoing successes that have made America healthier."
For more information on programs, initiatives, upcoming events and how you can get involved, visit the Evangelical Environmental Network website. ENN is based in New Freedom, York County.
The mission of ENN is to inspire, equip, educate, and mobilize evangelical Christians to love God and others by rediscovering and reclaiming the Biblical mandate to care for creation and working toward a stable climate and a healthy, pollution-free world.
Related Articles:
-- EPA Launches Biggest Deregulation Action For Industry In US History, 'Driving A Dagger Straight Into The Heart Of The Climate Change Religion,’ Unleashing The American Energy Industry [PaEN]
-- EPA Pulls Back Regulations Setting Methane Emission Limits, Regulating Wastewater From Oil & Gas Operations, Risk Management Rule At Petrochemical Plants [PaEN]
-- Clean Air Council: EPA To Reverse Life-Saving Finding Carbon Pollution Is Endangering Public Health By Driving Climate Change [PaEN]
-- Chesapeake Bay Foundation: EPA Deregulation Bombshell A Blow To The Chesapeake Bay [PaEN]
-- Evangelical Environmental Network: EPA Announces Plan To Put Pollution Before Our Health [PaEN]
Related Article:
-- Chesapeake Bay Foundation: Poll - Chesapeake Bay Watershed Cleanup Faces Unprecedented Federal Upheaval; Restoring The Bay Is Now MORE Of A Priority [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Post-Gazette Editorial: As Washington Unwinds Its Commitments, State And Local Governments Will Have To Step Up
-- Republican Herald Editorial: One-Sided Discussions On Issues Don’t Promote True Progress, EPA Visit Was Not A 'Roundtable Discussion,' But A 'Rally' For Natural Gas In Delaware River Basin [PaEN]
-- AP: EPA Head Says He’ll Roll Back Dozens Of Environmental Regulations, Including Rules On Climate Change
-- AP: A Breakdown Of Major EPA Deregulatory Moves Around Water, Air, Climate
-- E&E News/Politico: EPA Launches Assault On Environmental Regulations
-- Environmental Defense Fund: EPA’s Deregulation Plan Will Increase Pollution In Daily Lives
-- NYT: EPA Declares ‘Greatest Day Of Deregulation Our Nation Has Seen’
-- The Guardian: EPA To Reconsider Whether Greenhouse Gases Cause Harm Amid Climate Rollbacks
-- Bloomberg: President Mounts Sweeping Attack On Pollution, Climate Rules
-- Reuters: EPA Moves To Unwind Over Two Dozen US Air, Water Regulations
-- Utility Dive: EPA Aims To Roll Back Power Sector Regulations In Broad Deregulatory Push
-- Reuters: EPA Plans To Give Dirty US Coal-Fired Power Plants A Reprieve On Soot
-- EPA Withdraws Update Of Regulations On Testing Chemicals Under The Toxic Substances Control Act
[Posted: March 13, 2025] PA Environment Digest
No comments :
Post a Comment