The Trump administration on Thursday (Feb. 12) reversed a long-standing scientific determination that greenhouse gases threaten public health and welfare, dismantling a cornerstone of US climate policy.
President Donald Trump announced the decision at the White House, casting doubt on the scientific basis of the original finding.
“This decision had no basis in fact,” Trump said.
The rule, finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), rescinds a 2009 “endangerment finding,” a statement issued during the Obama administration that concluded carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health and welfare.
The legal framework of climate regulations
The 2009 threat finding served as the legal basis for nearly all federal climate regulations. This allowed the federal government to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles, power plants, and other major sources of global warming pollution.
By overturning this finding, the administration is removing the central legal rationale for a wide range of climate rules enacted over the past decade and a half.
The EPA is blocking the move
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin defended the decision, calling it a rejection of what he called burdensome and unnecessary climate mandates.
In addition to rescinding the endangerment finding, Zeldin announced that the administration would end what he referred to as the “Obama switch” — a feature in vehicles designed to reduce fuel consumption and emissions when the car is idling.
“There will be no more climate participation trophies awarded to manufacturers for making American cars die at every red light and stop sign,” Zeldin said at the White House. “It’s over, done, done.”
Zeldin called the fuel-saving technology an “Obama transition,” signaling a broader effort to undo climate-related policies enacted under previous administrations.