Senate Allows Thousands of the Worst Polluters Shut Off Clean Air Controls  

Today, the U.S. Senate, led by the GOP, voted along party lines to gut core protections in the Clean Air Act for the first time in the law’s 50-year history, handing a major win to about 1,800 of the worst-polluting facilities in the country. The vote was taken under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which allows Congress to repeal federal laws with a simple majority vote. The House of Representatives is expected to vote on this CRA in the coming weeks.

Major polluters like chemical plants, refineries, and pesticide manufacturers will be allowed to “reclassify” themselves as minor polluters with no obligation to control, monitor, or report their toxic emissions. Some 1,800 facilities across the country will be allowed to disconnect their pollution controls for the seven most dangerous air toxics, which include mercury, dioxins, and PCBs. These chemicals are toxic even in tiny quantities and accumulate in the environment and build up in our bodies. The greatest harm falls on pregnant women, infants, and children. Families in communities across the country are losing protection against cancer and birth defects without warning, oversight, or a legal chance to speak up.

James Pew, Earthjustice’s Director of Federal Clean Air Practice, issued the following statement:

“Chemical plants, refineries, the worst air quality offenders, asked to turn off pollution controls for the most dangerous chemicals they emit, and the Senate said yes. The House can still block this CRA. If it doesn’t, corporations will cash in while families and children breathe a toxic mix of cancer-causing chemicals.”