Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its final rule to repeal a more than decade-old decision known as the “endangerment finding,” which legally concludes that greenhouse gas emissions threaten human health and welfare by causing climate change. The final repeal does not challenge the medical research, which firmly establishes that greenhouse gases pose a threat to human health, but instead questions its own authority to limit carbon pollution, which has been granted by Congress and affirmed by the Supreme Court.
In response, Kim Anderson, Director of Member Mobilization for the Evangelical Environmental Network, released the following statement regarding the implications for Pennsylvania.
“As evangelical Christians, we believe creation care is a matter of life, which aligns with the EPA’s longstanding mission to protect human health and the environment. Unfortunately, rolling back the endangerment finding will continue to allow greenhouse gases to be released into the environment abundantly and with disregard, which will exacerbate rising temperatures and poor air quality, both of which endanger human health.
“Medical research has clearly demonstrated that climate change, fueled by climate pollution, harms human health and lives. As temperatures rise, so do conditions that make heat deaths, Lyme disease, asthma attacks, and other respiratory conditions more likely. Pennsylvania consistently ranks in the top ten states for Lyme disease per capita, and the number of cases continues to rise. We must do what we can to defend the health and life of Pennsylvanians. That means keeping the endangerment finding in place.
"As a citizen of Pennsylvania, which has benefited economically from fossil fuels for decades, and the granddaughter of a coal miner, I understand the benefits of this industry to our community. But this has come at a cost borne on the hearts, minds, and lungs of the men, women, and children who have called the region home. We must make energy in ways that do not have severe health impacts on people like me who live here. Revoking the endangerment finding is a step in the wrong direction for Pennsylvanians."
