SEO Riders:
– EPA plans to rescind its 2009 “endangerment finding,” the legal bedrock for U.S. greenhouse gas regulation.
- – EPA staff and global advocates warn the move undermines scientific consensus and risks deregulating air and vehicle emissions.
– Critics link the repeal to mounting environmental data purges, scientific workforce cuts, and public health rollback.
According to multiple reports, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under Administrator Lee Zeldin, is drafting a proposal to eliminate the 2009 “endangerment finding” — the scientific declaration that greenhouse gas emissions pose a direct threat to human health and welfare. The finding forms the legal foundation for EPA regulation under the Clean Air Act, including emissions caps for vehicles and industrial plants. Critics say its repeal would dismantle major federal climate policies and significantly weaken climate action authority in the U.S..
The announcement follows sweeping restructuring within the agency, including elimination of its Office of Research and Development and planned layoffs of hundreds of researchers. Over 200 EPA employees have publicly denounced the moves as politically motivated and harmful to science integrity. Environmental and legal experts warn that removing the endangerment finding not only contradicts established peer-reviewed science but could face legal blowback—courts may reject the change due to strong precedent and scientific consensus. Meanwhile, civil society groups like 350.org argue that such actions amount to “canceling the science,” posing existential risks to both U.S. and global climate resilience.
