The Environmental Protection Agency helps preserve the quality of life in America.
Because of the EPA, many of us take for granted having reasonably clean water and air and reasonable protections from various types of toxins.
Decades ago, many waterways were not swimmable or fishable due to industrial practices of dumping untreated toxic waste directly into waters. The Clean Water Act was passed in order to address this problem. The EPA’s implementation of this act dramatically improved water quality nationwide.
The EPA protects us against exposure to systemic toxins. For example, lead poisoning used to be a major health issue for children. The EPA regulated lead in paint, gasoline and pipes, leading to drastic reductions in the number of people afflicted with lead poisoning.
The Clean Air Act, enforced by the EPA, protects our cities and towns from air pollution. One only has to look at cities in China to know what U.S. cities could face without the protections of the Clear Air Act.
Such protections save hundreds of thousands of lives, prevent hundreds of thousands of illnesses, and save trillions in health care costs.
Those of us in the Four Corners can see with our own eyes how much the air quality has changed in the past three decades with the development of oil and gas and with ongoing coal-fired power plants. Seeing that change makes one wonder if the EPA needs more resources to protect our air.
Human activity contributes to climate change by emitting huge amounts of greenhouse gases.
Denying these facts will not make them go away. As water levels rise, sea level communities face devastating economic and health consequences. Areas prone to drought also face devastating consequences. Agriculture will be massively disrupted.
The EPA has started to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, a long-overdue step in helping to promote human health for multiple generations.
Nobody says, “We should have more pollution, more environmental toxins, dirty water, and worse air quality.” Weakening the EPA does not serve any greater good. A strong EPA makes the world a better and safer place for all.
Robin Richard, M.D.
Cortez
