Latest news with #Zeldin
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Louisiana to get $359K for water quality monitoring at beaches
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — The state will get $359,000 in funding to monitor water quality as summer nears and people travel to Louisiana's beaches to beat the heat. The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) will receive the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant for monitoring and notifying communities of high levels of bacteria. 'Ensuring the safety of beaches allows all Americans to have fun in the sun while providing an economic boost to coastal communities,' said Regional Administrator Scott Mason. 'I applaud Administrator Zeldin's initiative for ensuring our economies along the Gulf of America are vibrant and thriving.' Why you may not want to use last summer's sunscreen Over 10 beaches are under an advisory as of the most recent samples from May 27. LDH's Beach Monitoring Program tests water at sites along the coast weekly from May to October for enterococci bacteria. See which Louisiana beaches are under advisory: Constance Beach Cypremort Point State Park Beach Long (Dung) Beach Gulf Breeze Beach Grand Isle Beach Site #2 Grand Isle Beach Site #3 Grand Isle State Park Site #1 Grand Isle State Park Site #2 Grand Isle State Park Site #3 Grand Isle State Park Site #4 Holly Beach Site #1 Holly Beach Site #2 Holly Beach Site #3 Holly Beach Site #4 Holly Beach Site #5 Holly Beach Site #6 Lake Chares North Beach Little Florida Beach Martin (Mae's) Beach Rutherford Beach Planning a trip to the coast soon? Click here to see the latest advisories. According to LDH's 2024 report on beaches in Louisiana, bacteria densities were higher than in 2023 and higher than historic norms at several beaches, including Constance Beach Complex, Holly Beach, Lake Charles North Beach and Rutherford Beach. Supreme Court narrows scope of environmental reviews in Utah railroad case See fish kills in Louisiana? Here's how to report it to LDWF Red Stick Mom shares summer fun guide for Baton Rouge families Former NICU nurse accused of abusing babies now allowed to see brother's children Federal court blocks most of President Trump's tariffs Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Boston Globe
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Documents show EPA wants to erase greenhouse gas limits on power plants
Advertisement The EPA sent the draft to the White House for review on May 2. It could undergo changes before it is formally released and the public is given the opportunity to offer comments, likely in June. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The proposed regulation is part of a broader attack by the Trump administration on the established science that greenhouse gases threaten human health and the environment. Scientists have overwhelmingly concluded that carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases from the burning of oil, gas, and coal are dangerously heating the planet. 'Fossil fuel power plants are the single-largest industrial source of climate-destabilizing carbon dioxide in the United States, and emit pollution levels that exceed the vast majority of countries in the world,' said Vickie Patton, general counsel for the Environmental Defense Fund, an environmental group. Advertisement She called the proposed regulation 'an abuse of the EPA's responsibility under the law' and added, 'It flies in the face of common sense and puts millions of people in harm's way to say the single-largest industrial source of carbon dioxide in the United States is not significant.' The draft reviewed by the Times said the agency 'is proposing to repeal all greenhouse gas emissions standards for fossil fuel-fired power plants.' That would include Biden-era requirements that existing coal-fired units capture carbon pollution before it leaves the smokestack and store it, and that require some new gas plants use technologies that pollute less. 'We are seeking to ensure that the agency follows the rule of law while providing all Americans with access to reliable and affordable energy,' Lee Zeldin, the EPA administrator, said in a statement. Zeldin's spokesperson, Molly Vaseliou, declined to offer more information about the plan, other than to say 'the proposal will be published once it has completed interagency review and been signed by the administrator.' The Trump administration is methodically uprooting policies aimed at curbing climate change, and the EPA is at the epicenter of that effort. In recent weeks, Zeldin has shuttered offices responsible for regulating climate and air pollution and has launched the repeal of more than two dozen regulations and policies. The agency is feeling pressure from the White House to finalize its deregulations by December, according to two people briefed on internal discussions who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to describe them. That would be an extraordinarily fast pace. Rewriting regulations can typically take more than a year. Advertisement One target is a 2009 EPA finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health. That determination underpins most federal climate regulations, and repealing it would erase the agency's legal authority to regulate carbon pollution from power plants, vehicles, oil and gas infrastructure, and other sources. Zeldin said deregulation would drive 'a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion.' In proposing to lift regulations on power plants, the EPA points to the fact that the US share of global power sector emissions represented about 3 percent of worldwide greenhouse gases in 2022, down from 5.5 percent in 2005. So, it argued, even if US power plants erased all their greenhouse gases from the power sector, the risk to public health would not be 'meaningfully' improved. But in the U.S., power plants were responsible for about 25 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2022. They emitted about 1.5 billion metric tons of emissions in 2023, which is more than the total greenhouse gas emissions produced by most countries. Just a year ago, when the Biden administration announced tough new limits on pollution from existing coal-fired power plants as well as some new gas-burning plants, the EPA said the restrictions would mean that by 2035, the nation would annually avoid up to 1,200 premature deaths, 870 hospital visits, 1,900 cases of asthma, 48,000 school absences, and 57,000 lost work days. Attorneys who represent utility companies said they agree that the sector is a small part of the global climate problem. 'The argument is a solid argument,' said Jeffrey Holmstead, who served in the EPA during both Bush administrations and now represents utility companies as a lawyer for the firm Bracewell. Advertisement But he wondered if it would hold up under a legal challenge. 'I just don't know, if you're contributing 3 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, the court will say, 'That's not significant,' when there's hardly anybody that contributes more than that.' Only China releases more pollution from its power plants than the United States. The EPA plan is likely to face lawsuits once it is finalized. If it survives, it could block future administrations from regulating carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, eliminating a tool that Democratic administrations have relied on to tackle climate change. It also could make it easier to unravel other climate regulations, some experts said. 'If the administration is going to do this, it is the strategically smartest way,' said Jonathan Adler, a conservative law professor at Case Western University. 'If they're successful with regard to power plants, they're pretty much going to be successful with everything else,' he said. This article originally appeared in
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
EPA Administrator Zeldin 'heartbroken' after shooting of Israel embassy staffer he met just two weeks ago
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin had just met with one of the slain Israeli Embassy staffers earlier in May, posting to social media Thursday he was "heartbroken" over her shooting by a "Jew-hating radical." Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, two staffers of the Embassy of Israel to the United States who were engaged to be married, were shot and killed as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., Wednesday night. Zeldin posted to X Thursday afternoon that he had met Milgrim, who was an American employee of the embassy, two weeks ago in his office. Fatal Shooting Of Israeli Embassy Workers In Dc Sparks Outrage From Trump, Israeli President "I just met Sarah two weeks ago in my office at EPA HQ," Zeldin posted. "She struck me as a young woman filled with life and positivity. "Heartbroken to learn she was one of two tragically murdered last night by a Jew-hating radical screaming 'Free Palestine,'" he continued. "May Sarah and Yaron rest in peace." Read On The Fox News App Two Israeli Diplomats Shot, Killed During Event At Capital Jewish Museum In Washington, Dc Zeldin shared a smiling photo of himself and Milgrim from the day they met. Milgrim and Lischinsky were killed as they left the museum's event focused on finding humanitarian solutions for Gaza. Fbi Investigating Killing Of Israeli Embassy Employees As Possible Hate Crime Lischinsky was born in Israel and grew up in Germany. His father is Jewish, and his mother is Christian. Authorities took Elias Rodriguez, a 30-year-old man from Chicago, into custody. Upon being taken into custody, Rodriguez began shouting: "Free, free Palestine." The FBI is investigating the incident as "an act of terror."Original article source: EPA Administrator Zeldin 'heartbroken' after shooting of Israel embassy staffer he met just two weeks ago
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Citing Maine Morning Star reporting, Pingree presses EPA on PFAS grant terminations
Rep. Chellie Pingree outside the U.S. Capitol. (Rep. Chellie Pingree via Facebook) Citing Maine Morning Star's reporting, Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine pressed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on conflicting statements about why it cut grants for forever chemical research in Maine. Earlier this month, the EPA terminated all of the grants it had awarded for research into reducing per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, otherwise known as PFAS, in the food supply, including to three Maine-based teams led by the Mi'kmaq Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe and the University of Maine. The three grants for Maine projects amounted to almost $5 million. The termination notices read, 'The objectives of the award are no longer consistent with EPA funding priorities.' In a statement to Maine Morning Star, the EPA Press Office equated the grants to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion measures. However, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin publicly stated the grants were important and already congressionally appropriated when questioned by Pingree. Overall, the agency has highlighted combating PFAS contamination as a priority in recent weeks. Despite saying PFAS contamination is a priority, EPA cut millions in funding for research in Maine In a letter to Zeldin on Thursday, Pingree requested he address these inconsistencies and clarify EPA priorities by May 30. 'Do you and the EPA consider tribes – which are sovereign governments to which we have trust and treaty responsibilities – 'DEI?' If so, under what basis do you make that claim?' one of Pingree's questions to Zeldin in the letter reads. When asked why the grants no longer aligned with agency priorities, the EPA Press Office sent a statement on May 16 to Maine Morning Star, which read:, 'As with any change in administration, the EPA has been reviewing all of its grant programs and awarded grants to ensure each is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars and to understand how those programs align with administration priorities. Maybe the Biden-Harris administration shouldn't have forced their radical agenda of wasteful DEI programs and 'environmental justice' preferencing on the EPA's core mission of protecting human health and the environment treating tribes and Alaska Natives as such.' Pingree and several of the researchers pushed back on this response, pointing out that the research objectives do not involve DEI or environmental justice and are about protecting public health. PFAS have been linked to long term adverse health outcomes, such as cancers and weakened immune systems, and their pervasiveness in agriculture is not fully understood. The statement is also directly at odds with the response Zeldin gave to Pingree about the grant terminations during an Appropriations subcommittee hearing on May 15. After Zeldin told the subcommittee that addressing PFAS contamination is a priority for the agency and him personally, Pingree asked, 'Since these grants are consistent with the EPA priorities, do you know why they were terminated?' Zeldin responded, 'It's an important program. It's something that's congressionally appropriated. The agency's going through a reorg, so the way that the program and these grants are administered are going to be different going forward. But these are important grants. I look forward to working with you, and your team as we're able to continue that good work going forward.' In light of these conflicting responses, Pingree asked Zeldin in her letter to confirm that addressing PFAS is a priority for the agency. 'If PFAS is a priority, which I believe you have stated many times, please provide more information about why the above listed grants were terminated,' the letter reads. 'They are not 'DEI' grants and they meet a key priority of the Agency so I would like some clarity as to the exact reasoning for these grant terminations.' The grantees have 30 days from their termination notices to make the case that their work is in compliance with the EPA's priorities. The team headed by the Mi'kmaq Nation filed its appeal on Wednesday. If the agency determines the grants are in line with agency priorities, Pingree also requested information on how and when the awards will be reinstated. Referring to the agency's work as a whole, Pingree additionally pressed Zeldin about the agency's plans for PFAS research beyond these grants. 'Without grants that fund research and scientific advancement for PFAS remediation, how will the EPA make determinations about effective remediation for PFAS in agriculture, water systems, and contaminated lands?' she wrote in the letter. Read more about the grants here. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
E&E News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Dems and Zeldin square off in fiery debate over EPA grants
Festering frustration over the fate of billions of dollars in Biden-era grants erupted Wednesday during an acrimonious Senate hearing as two senior Democrats clashed with EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. 'You guys are going to have to start getting your story straight,' Environment and Public Works ranking member Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) told Zeldin after citing sworn court filings that he said contradicted Zeldin's claims that every canceled EPA grant was first individually reviewed. 'I conducted an individual review of everything and that concept doesn't work for you,' Zeldin said as their exchange devolved into a shouting match. 'You don't care about wasting money, but the Trump administration does, senator.' Advertisement The confrontation underscored Democrats' ire over the Trump administration's quest to take back hundreds of grants awarded by EPA and other agencies during former President Joe Biden's tenure.
