Trump EPA Downplays Local Emissions in Proposed Repeal

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The EPA on Tuesday proposed rescinding a Biden-era ruling to reclassify Utah’s Wasatch Front from “serious” nonattainment of the 2015 ozone standards to mere “moderate” nonattainment, significantly decreasing required pollution reductions. The proposal downplays local emissions, shifting blame to foreign sources instead of reining in local emissions. EPA has issued similar proposed rulings in other states across the West.

The ruling slashes the stringent rules in place that would clean up Utah’s air, instead enabling polluters to emit with little consequence.

In response, Sierra Club Senior Campaign Organizer Luis Miranda issued the following statement: 

“EPA is telling Wasatch front residents that our heavy inversions are here to stay. Crying wolf about foreign emissions won’t change the fact that the vast majority of our air pollution comes from transportation and local industry. What’s the point of having an Environmental Protection Agency that won’t protect us? We need EPA to strengthen regulations on emissions that we can control, not scapegoat them.”

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person’s right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.