Message of the Week: October 5, 2020
In the middle of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that preys on those with respiratory ailments and has taken the lives of over 200,000 Americans, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler is moving forward with rollbacks that make our air harder to breathe. Last week he finalized a rule to create a toxic loophole in the Clean Air Act by halting enforcement of the “once-in, always in” toxic air policy.
This “Air Toxics Loophole” would allow large industrial facilities nationwide to avoid complying with limits on hazardous air pollutants such as benzene and mercury.
The EPA’s own analysis indicates that this loophole would allow thousands of major pollution sources -- such as refineries and chemical plants -- located in almost every state to avoid compliance with pollution standards, risking a dramatic increase of harmful pollution in our air.
To make matters worse, many of the facilities that could take advantage of the air toxics loophole are located in low-income communities and communities of color that are already suffering disproportionate burdens from air pollution, the COVID-19 crisis, and are most vulnerable to the health impacts of poor air quality.
This lawless decision by Wheeler is a direct giveaway to dirty corporate polluters at the expense of our air, our health, and our communities.
Reorient Target Messaging
[Senator] needs to hold EPA Administrator Wheeler accountable for his anti-environmental agenda and its impact on air quality in [STATE].
We need bold solutions to address both the coronavirus pandemic and the air pollution that threatens our health and contributes to the climate crisis.
Renew Target Messaging
We need [Senator] to take action to hold Andrew Wheeler accountable and have a plan to help protect our health and environment, enhance job creation and the economy, correct inequities linked to environmental injustices and health disparities, and mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.
Energize Target Messaging
We commend [Representative] for moving swiftly to address the climate crisis and for understanding that science matters in developing public policies that protect our health and environment. Andrew Wheeler must be held accountable for taking actions that will certainly lower air quality and threaten public health.
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Additional Resources
CAC Resource: Mercury and Air Toxics Standards “Poison Plan” Toolkit
The 100% Clean Economy Act of 2019 Toolkits are accessible here:
Trump Budget Toolkit is accessible here:
For more national and state-specific facts about climate change, clean energy, extreme weather, and carbon pollution, please visit the regularly updated Climate Change Index at https://climateindex.org/