Inside Climate News
As scientific research increases and new threats emerge, the regulatory landscape evolves over the years, but it has always required watchdogs. ELPC works for smart, science-based solutions and effective implementation to protect Midwesterners and their environment from a broad range of pollutants.
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5 or soot) is a category of tiny air pollutants that can affect everyone, but especially children, the elderly, and those with asthma and other chronic respiratory illnesses. For several years, ELPC worked with community groups to gather air quality data in Chicago. We identified times and places with consistently elevated PM2.5 levels in order to pursue effective solutions. We advocated and testified in support of stronger federal soot standards, which the EPA finally updated in 2024.
Greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, are a broad range of pollutants that are driving climate change. Carbon dioxide is primarily released by burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas in power plants and vehicles. EPA set new pollution standards for coal and new gas power plants in April 2024; EPA is working to develop standards for existing gas power plants. Check out ELPC’s take on the final powerplant standards here. ELPC has also joined other environmental groups to defend this rule in court. EPA also updated greenhouse gas pollution standards for heavy-duty vehicles, such as freight trucks, school buses, and garbage trucks. Heavy-duty vehicles are a small percentage of vehicles on the road, but they emit 25% of the transportation sector climate pollution along with a significant percentage of harmful soot and other air pollutants. Check out ELPC’s statement here.
In March of 2024 EPA issued new standards for a range of vehicles sold in model year 2027-2032, including everything from cars, minivans, and SUVs to super-duty pickups and delivery vans. These standards will ratchet down tail-pipe pollution of smog forming ozone, particulate pollution, and greenhouse gases. During the rulemaking process, the oil and auto industries pleaded their case for weaker standards, while ELPC and our environmental and public health partners all called for EPA to go with a stronger version that would accelerate the path to zero-tailpipe pollution. Check out ELPC’s blog on the proposed standards and statement on the final standards here. ELPC has also joined other environmental groups to defend this rule in court.
Methane has 80 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide in the first 20 years. That makes reducing methane emissions one of the most important steps to reduce climate change in the near term. In 2024, EPA published final standards to reduce methane pollution from the oil and gas supply chain. Unfortunately, the polluters are challenging these new pollution standards in court,In October, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the request from its shadow docket for an emergency stay of the EPA’s new rule, meaning these better standards will remain in place while the U.S. Court of Appeals considers the challenges. Read ELPC’s blog and statement here.
The national Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) have been a major success story, reducing mercury pollution from power plants by 81% since the rule was issued in 2011. Unfortunately, the EPA under the Trump Administration tried to roll back this successful rule, ELPC fought to save MATS to protect our communities and the environment of the Midwest, and we were glad to see EPA finalize a rule to continue cutting mercury and other hazardous air pollutants from existing power plants. Check out more information on regulating mercury from power plants here.
NEPA is the bedrock environmental law that requires federal projects (or those with federal funding) to consider environmental impacts (including air and climate impacts) of projects and alternatives to the proposed project. The Trump administration turned long standing guidelines for NEPA implementation upside down and the Biden Administration took a 2-step approach to righting them. The phase 2 NEPA rule was published in May of 2022 and the final Phase 2 NEPA rule was issued in May of 2024. ELPC’s take on NEPA and the Biden Administration’s updates is here.