On Friday, responding to the 2007 Supreme Court decision which required a scientific review, the EPA issued a proposed finding statement citing greenhouse gases (GHG) as a health threat.
The proposed finding now moves to a 60-day public comment period before being finalized. You can bet all the lobbyists and industry will be all over this one.
The report identified six GHGs that pose a potential threat, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. Obviously, of these, CO2 is the one most people associate with global warming.
In a statement, the EPA said:
“This finding confirms that greenhouse gas pollution is a serious problem now and for future generations. Fortunately, it follows President Obama’s call for a low carbon economy and strong leadership in Congress on clean energy and climate legislation. This pollution problem has a solution – one that will create millions of green jobs and end our country’s dependence on foreign oil.
In both magnitude and probability, climate change is an enormous problem. The greenhouse gases that are responsible for it endanger public health and welfare within the meaning of the Clean Air Act.”
The press release goes on to state:
The scientific analysis also confirms that climate change impacts human health in several ways. Findings from a recent EPA study titled “Assessment of the Impacts of Global Change on Regional U.S. Air Quality: A Synthesis of Climate Change Impacts on Ground-Level Ozone,” for example, suggest that climate change may lead to higher concentrations of ground-level ozone, a harmful pollutant. Additional impacts of climate change include, but are not limited to:
- increased drought;
- more heavy downpours and flooding;
- more frequent and intense heat waves and wildfires;
- greater sea level rise;
- more intense storms; and
- harm to water resources, agriculture, wildlife and ecosystems.
Many feel that while the EPA could itself begin regulating GHGs, what is more likely is for this finding to fuel moves to get Congress to pass regulations involving cap-and-trade solutions, as recommended by President Barack Obama's administration.
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