In a world full of alternative facts, it should come as no surprise that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) no-longer stands for Protecting the Environment. On Jan. 20, only a day before millions of Americans took to the streets to march in support of climate action, the EPA made major changes to its website. According to their public statement, the EPA website would be “undergoing changes that reflect the agency’s new direction under President Donald Trump and Administrator Scott Pruitt.”
The mission of EPA is to protect human health and the environment. It’s worth repeating the EPA’s purpose, from their website:
- All Americans are protected from significant risks to human health and the environment where they live, learn and work;
- National efforts to reduce environmental risk are based on the best available scientific information;
- Federal laws protecting human health and the environment are enforced fairly and effectively;
- Environmental protection is an integral consideration in U.S. policies concerning natural resources, human health, economic growth, energy, transportation, agriculture, industry, and international trade, and these factors are similarly considered in establishing environmental policy;
- All parts of society — communities, individuals, businesses, and state, local and tribal governments — have access to accurate information sufficient to effectively participate in managing human health and environmental risks;
- Environmental protection contributes to making our communities and ecosystems diverse, sustainable and economically productive; and
- The United States plays a leadership role in working with other nations to protect the global environment.
The most apparent change to the EPA website is that the entire section dedicated to Climate Change was eliminated. No more scientific information, no more Climate Change problem … despite nearly irrefutable scientific evidence that climate change is due to human activity. Their new policies are designed to favor incumbent energy industries without regard to the environment, and are clearly in conflict with the defined mission of the EPA.
Temporarily there is still an archive of the old EPA website at https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/climatechange_.html. This temporary archive site maintains much of the EPA’s valuable scientific information, as well as the clear ways in which the Climate Change problem and solutions are explained. For more about the EPA’s climate change denial, please Listen Up to this week’s Energy Show on Renewable Energy World.
About the Energy Show
As energy costs consume more and more of our hard-earned dollars, we as consumers really start to pay attention. But we don’t have to resign ourselves to $5/gallon gas prices, $200/month electric bills and $500 heating bills. There are literally hundreds of products, tricks and techniques that we can use to dramatically reduce these costs — very affordably.
The Energy Show on Renewable Energy World is a weekly 20-minute podcast that provides tips and advice to reduce your home and business energy consumption. Every week we’ll cover topics that will help cut your energy bill, explain new products and technologies in plain English, and cut through the hype so that you can make smart and cost-effective energy choices.
About Your Host
Barry Cinnamon is a long-time advocate of renewable energy and is a widely recognized solar power expert. In 2001 he founded Akeena Solar — which grew to become the largest national residential solar installer by the middle of the last decade with over 10,000 rooftop customers coast to coast. He partnered with Westinghouse to create Westinghouse Solar in 2010, and sold the company in 2012.
His pioneering work on reducing costs of rooftop solar power systems include Andalay, the first solar panel with integrated racking, grounding and wiring; the first UL listed AC solar panel; and the first fully “plug and play” AC solar panel. His current efforts are focused on reducing the soft costs for solar power systems, which cause system prices in the U.S. to be double those of Germany.
Although Barry may be known for his outspoken work in the solar industry, he has hands-on experience with a wide range of energy saving technologies. He’s been doing residential energy audits since the punch card days, developed one of the first ground-source heat pumps in the early ‘80s, and always abides by the Laws of Thermodynamics.
This podcast was originally produced by Spice Solar and was presented here with permission.
Lead image credit: Patrick Breitenbach | Flickr
