Testimonies from a Warming World
Three climate activists state plainly what is at stake as the EPA tries to walk away from its responsibility to protect us from climate pollution.
When the Trump administration repealed the 2009 endangerment finding yesterday, public backlash came swiftly. To go through with this dangerous move equates to our federal government attempting to wash its hands of the need to protect people from climate pollution.
We have more evidence than we need to stand by the scientific finding, issued more than 16 years ago by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), stating that carbon dioxide, methane, and other climate-changing pollutants are hazardous to our health and well-being. And poll after poll confirms—even in a divided electorate—that most voters are concerned about climate impacts in their communities, and most also want the country to prioritize clean energy over fossil fuels.
There’s little reason for anyone to question climate change: Time and time again, local communities, cities, and states are forced to pick up the pieces wrought by intensifying storms and floods, worsening air quality and respiratory illness, and other direct harms of global warming. That health and economic burden falling on all of our shoulders will only grow—and exacerbate circumstances for low-income and disadvantaged communities, especially.
Notably, adds NRDC attorney Rachel Heron, “in their final rule repealing the endangerment finding, the EPA doesn’t bother to deny the impact that climate change is already having on people across the country. Instead, they are saying that they just don’t care."
As the agency was proposing this reckless move last year, a set of members from the NRDC Action Fund, a sister organization of NRDC, spoke out about how climate change has left indelible marks on their lives and the country. Their moving testimonies remind us why we must keep fighting—and who we’re fighting for.
A nurse’s view
“Since retirement, I have tried to educate citizens and legislators about the dangers of pollution. As a resident of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, I would like to remind them that while we are no longer a smoky city, we continue to be a polluted county—one of the worst eight counties in the country. As a nurse, I saw professionally the negative health effects on numerous patients with respiratory cardiac conditions and cancers.
Westman speaks out due to the negative health effects she saw in her patients as well as the loss of a 10-year-old due to asthma.
Personally, I lost a 10-year-old boy who was dear to me from a fatal asthma attack. More and more studies are showing shortened lifespan risks, birth defects, and the long list of established health threats continues to expand from these studies. We know better. We must do better. Tragically, I can’t believe these are proposals to send us back to the dark ages. The important work that the EPA has done to date has been of help. Please continue to do so. Limit fossil fuels and their negative effects. I urge the EPA to follow clean air standards and keep the 2009 endangerment finding and greenhouse gas standards in place.”
—Kathryn Westman, retired nurse, Pittsburgh
A community leader’s grief
“Superstorm Sandy was the worst disaster to ever hit New Jersey. When [it] hit, my friend’s parents went to try to pick up their parents so the whole family could weather the storm together. They never reached their destination. Instead, the extreme winds caused a mature tree to fall on their car, gruesomely killing them. My friend and I were 19 years old at the time. She was forced to raise her 9-year-old and 11-year-old siblings while still attempting to graduate college. With climate change increasing the intensity and the frequency of severe weather events, how many more tragic stories like this will occur?
Garreffa speaks out to emphasize that extreme weather events have devastating, long-lasting consequences for real people.
Superstorm Sandy was not an isolated incident. According to the U.S. government’s Fifth National Climate Assessment, which features research from 14 different federal agencies, the Northeast has experienced the largest regional increase of extreme precipitation in the United States, with a 60 percent increase in recent decades.
Because of this, my husband and I are struggling with whether to start a family. In the next 50 years, global warming and extreme weather events will push the climate to the absolute limits of human survivability. Knowing that, how can I, in good conscience, bring children into this world and subject them to that future? If the government wants to avert the crisis of a shrinking, aging population in the U.S., then we all have a duty to protect the future of younger generations.”
—Julianna Garreffa, municipal environmental commissioner, South Orange, New Jersey
A reminder that we are all in this together
“The endangerment finding is crucial in our efforts to reduce the impacts of the climate crisis. I have seen these impacts firsthand when Hurricane Ida flooded my community and destroyed homes. The local fire department had to cut through the siding of one home to rescue the person inside. That home was washed away hours later.
Nakhleh speaks out to highlight the immense costs of natural disasters.
The climate crisis is here today and is all around us. Just this year, the Los Angeles wildfires caused tremendous damage, estimated to cost over $95 billion. Tragic Texas flooding took over 100 lives. No one is safe, as evidenced by Hurricane Helene flooding an area that was thought to be least affected by climate change. We all bear the cost of these disasters because our tax dollars rightfully go to those harmed. Additionally, our insurance rates are rising to compensate for all the payouts. These disasters cost us dearly; not only in dollars but also in lives.
The EPA's job is to protect us from environmental harm. The climate crisis is the biggest environmental threat there is.”
—Julia Nakhleh, resident of Pennsylvania
Add your name: I stand with climate science and the law
NRDC is fighting back in court to stop the EPA’s illegal giveaway to polluters. Help us get to 25,000 signatures for climate protections. Join us in demanding that the EPA respect climate science and the law, uphold the endangerment finding, and protect people from dangerous vehicle pollution.
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