by Julia Robins ’20

The biggest critique of environmental protections and regulations on business, according to many Republicans, is that limiting pollutants costs money, hurting the economy and American jobs. With the coronavirus epidemic devastating the economy, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Trump’s Administration seems to be taking advantage of the Coronavirus outbreak to further an agenda to repeal environmental protections to benefit the fossil fuel industry. 

The Trump administration is known for rolling back and repealing many environmental protections. March 26 marks the most drastic rollback of all: everything. The EPA released a memorandum (which can be seen here), stating that they are suspending enforcing all environmental regulations such as air, water, and toxic waste pollution indefinitely. They emphasized that due to the current economic conditions “there may be constraints on the ability of a facility or laboratory to carry out certain activities required by our federal environmental permits, regulations, and statutes.” 

However, they noted an expectation that regulations be followed. Realistically, however, fossil fuel and waste companies are practically jumping for joy that they can cut corners. Many see this as the Trump Administration’s way to dismantle environmental regulations and to finalize the rollbacks before this year’s election. Cynthia Giles, who headed the EPA’s Office of Enforcement during the Obama administration, explained in a statement to The Hill that “this EPA statement is essentially a nationwide waiver of environmental rules for the indefinite future. It tells companies across the country that they will not face enforcement even if they emit unlawful air and water pollution in violation of environmental laws, so long as they claim that those failures are in some way ’caused’ by the virus pandemic.” 

As of March 31, the Trump Administration repealed another major protection–Obama’s fuel efficiency rules. The changes to Obama-era regulations will allow vehicles to emit about a billion more tons of toxins – equivalent to roughly a fifth of annual U.S. emissions, according to the New York Times. This, ironically, will only make the coronavirus worse, because coronavirus impacts those with respiratory problems the most, and allowing for worse air quality that is known to degrade respiratory functions is counterproductive at best. Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia have sued over the changes, as “weakening the standards would kill about 2,000 more people and cause 50,000 more cases of respiratory illnesses, while making the climate crisis worse,” according to The Guardian.

This is also somewhat ironic since this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Clean Air Act- or is it perfect timing for the Trump Administration to take a stand for the fossil fuel industry? 2020 so far has been the record-breaking year of heat, rising hunger, displacement and loss of life due to extreme temperatures and weather disasters–all of which could be prevented with environmental protections that Trump is currently repealing in an effort to boost the economy. But Americans must ask themselves which is more important: short-term economic relief or the long-term destruction of the planet and future generations to come?