President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce proposed setbacks to the National Environmental Policy Act regulations in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington on January 9, 2020.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
President Donald Trump finalized on Wednesday a reversal of the country’s environmental law, the National Environmental Policy Act, by speeding up the approval of federal projects such as pipelines, roads and power plants.
NEPA was enacted by President Richard Nixon 50 years ago and requires federal agencies to consider the environmental consequences of infrastructure projects before they are approved. The law has also been vital in allowing communities to assess how such projects impact climate change and their own health and safety.
In a major victory for the energy industry, the administration changes will aim to decrease the number of infrastructure projects that will be subject to NEPA review, effectively shortening the lengthy permit processes that have historically delayed projects.
Trump made the announcement at the UPS Hapeville Airport Hub in Atlanta, Georgia. The president pointed to some US infrastructure projects that have been delayed due to extensive litigation and permitting processes: “That all ends today,” he said. “We are doing something very dramatic.”
The move is the latest effort by the Trump administration to reverse a series of current environmental regulations to combat accelerated climate change and protect natural habitats from drilling and development. So far, the administration has reversed more than 100 environmental rules, and previously announced its intention to weaken NEPA in January.
Environmentalists quickly condemned Trump’s announcement, arguing that the decision restricts the public’s right to have a voice in developing pipelines and other projects in their neighborhoods and disproportionately affects poor and minority communities, many of which live in areas with higher contamination rates.
“The Trump administration’s anti-environmental agenda is a racist agenda. Dismantling NEPA is a blatant attempt to silence working-class communities of color that resist expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure in their communities,” he said. Lisa Ramsden, Chief Greenpeace Climate Activist. U.S.
Gina McCarthy, chair and executive director of the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the reversal of the NEPA administration is a clear effort to allow industries to more easily pollute communities and limits the ability of communities to participate in Projects.
“People have the right to evaluate before a highway project destroys their neighborhood or a pipe runs through their backyard,” McCarthy said in a statement. “Progressing your concerns will mean more polluted air, more polluted water, more threats to health, and more environmental destruction.”
“Now more than ever, our leaders should be helping people breathe easier, not giving favors to oil drillers, pipe developers and other polluters,” said McCarthy.
However, Republican officials and the oil and gas industry have long complained about the long and cumbersome approval process for projects that are often under the scrutiny of environmental groups.
The American Petroleum Institute was one of the industry groups that urged management last year to modernize and accelerate NEPA reviews in a way that “strengthens our economy and improves environmental stewardship.”
The measure to dismantle NEPA will likely be challenged in court and also comes before the November elections. Under a different administration, Congress could potentially end Trump’s weakening of NEPA by a majority vote and the president’s signature. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who recently unveiled a $ 2 trillion climate change plan, has vowed to reverse Trump’s environmental setbacks.
“This may be the greatest gift to polluters in the past 40 years,” said Brett Hartl, director of government affairs for the Center for Biological Diversity.
“The dismantling of NEPA is a victory for corruption, a victory for polluters and a victory for those who benefit from the destruction of our planet,” said Hartl. “Everyone else loses.”
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