After the Environmental Protection Agency announced it had set up an electronic mailbox for regulated companies to request presidential exemptions under the Clean Air Act, experts fear a public health crisis could be looming if the administration grants passes to notorious polluters.
What's happening?
In March, the EPA revealed that regulated companies had until the end of the month to request presidential exemptions to a series of rules involving hazardous air pollutant emission standards under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act, established in 1970.
If they filed requests, companies had to provide reasoning for why they qualified for exemptions for up to two years under Section 112, explaining why they didn't have the technology to adhere to emissions standards and how their requests would support national security interests.
"Submitting a request via this email box does not entitle the submitter to an exemption," the EPA wrote. "The President will make a decision on the merits."
Why are critics worried about Section 112 filings?
After the EPA announced a rule in 2024 to tighten ethylene oxide emissions standards — in order to reduce the risk of cancer from exposure — the Biden administration also offered companies a chance to apply for exemptions under Section 112, as EPA spokeswoman Molly Vaseliou noted to the Associated Press.
However, critics are wary of this year's move because it comes amid planned layoffs at the EPA, a renewed focus on drilling for dirty fuels, and a push to roll back environmental protections that also safeguard community health. This time around, nine EPA rules are up for reconsideration.
These include regulations limiting mercury (known to cause brain damage in children), coal-fired plant pollution (coal is the deadliest fuel), and ethylene oxide (a notorious pollutant in "Cancer Alley," which has unusually high rates of the disease).
Vickie Patton, general counsel for the Environmental Defense Fund, said to the AP that the EPA's announcement was nothing more than "an invitation to pollute."
What's being done about this?
As of April 4, the Trump administration hadn't announced which exemptions — if any — it had approved. However, Patton suggested to the AP that the Environmental Defense Fund would be among the organizations pushing for transparency and clean-air regulations. Â
"We will go to court," she said. "We will get their records and we will make that list public."
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On April 8, a White House press release indicated exemptions for coal operators are on the way.
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Yes — always 💯 More broadly, the Trump administration has said that improving the country's health is one of its key priorities, noting how American life expectancy is less than that of other developed countries.
Some say these stated goals have gotten off to a rocky start amid federal restructuring. For instance, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told reporters he expects to reinstate mistakenly cut programs, including one that monitors lead exposure levels in children, per ABC News.
However, health-friendly legislation — like the banning of petroleum-based synthetic food dyes — experiences broad bipartisan support.
Raising awareness about the risks of issuing emissions exemptions, including by contacting your representatives, is one way to advocate for a healthier future for everyone.
"It is an enormous stretch to suggest that there's some national interest in giving industry the right to pollute," Jason Rylander, a lawyer for the Center for Biological Diversity, told the AP.
"That doesn't make sense to me."
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