The first Earth Day was celebrated 55 years ago on April 22, 1970. The front-page headline of the New York Times trumpeted “Millions join Earth Day observances across the nation.”
President Richard Nixon planted a tree on the White House lawn to commemorate the day. This outpouring of enthusiasm to protect the planet was propelled by some alarming images: pictures of dead, oil-soaked, birds, and seals from an oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara; an Ohio river so polluted it caught fire; Los Angeles smog so toxic that “unhealthy to breath” days reached 200 that year. Millions of Earth Day demonstrators demanded action. Congress quickly established the Environmental Protection Agency and put in place national air and water quality standards.
Over the years, pollution control regulations and environmental protection policies to keep communities safe from toxic pollution were promoted by both Republicans and Democrats. In recent years that has changed. Republicans have become more and more opposed to environmental protection regulations, choosing to side with polluting industries who complain that cleaning up their pollution reduces their profits. They have embraced coal, oil and gas companies by rejecting climate science that shows emissions from burning fossil fuels are overheating the planet and causing extreme weather events. “Drill, baby, drill” policies put polluters first over the health and safety of everyday people.
In 2022, the most significant climate legislation ever passed by Congress did not receive a single vote of support from Republicans. Now that the GOP controls the White House, both houses of Congress, and have the support of a conservative Supreme Court, President Trump is unrestrained in his efforts to revive coal, promote oil and gas drilling, eliminate clean energy incentives, and ignore global warming. The head of today’s EPA, Lee Zeldin, says his intention is to drive a “dagger through the heart of climate-change religion.”
The Republicans “polluters first” agenda protects corporate interests and hurts working families. According to the Environmental Protection Network, firing 10,000 scientists, engineers and enforcement experts who were working to protect the public from toxic polluters will have grave consequences. Rolling back tailpipe and smokestack standards will lead to 100 million asthma attacks and cause 200,000 premature deaths. Weakened enforcement of safe drinking water will leave communities vulnerable to contamination. Ignoring fossil fuel emissions pollutes our atmosphere, overheats our planet and puts our safety, health, and economy at the risk of extreme wildfires, storms, floods, and droughts.
The audacity of the “polluters first” agenda is unmistakable in Zeldin’s EPA policy, announced in March, which sets up an electronic mailbox to allow polluters to request a Presidential Exemption to the Clean Air Act. Polluting industries can now simply send an email to the EPA and get an exemption from producing hazardous air pollutants regardless of its effect on community health or safety.
The “polluters first” agenda emanating from Washington may explain the current struggles local citizens, government officials and the California Coastal Commission are having with Sable Offshore Corp. Despite the devastation that oil drilling and distribution companies have inflicted on coastal Santa Barbara County, this arrogant oil company apparently feels entitled to ignore regulatory authority. Regardless of local sentiments, they want to resurrect oil production in a county and city that have adopted Climate Action Plans with goals to phase out fossil fuels and transition to a clean energy future.
Earlier this month an estimated 5,000 people marched down State Street protesting policies emanating from Republicans in Washington. This Earth Day, inspired by decades of bipartisan efforts to protect our communities from polluters, encouraged by the determination of our neighbors to protest in the streets, let’s demand that governments hold polluters responsible for their pollution and side with people who want to keep their communities safe, clean, and healthy.
