Michael Regan, Environment Protection Agency administrator, is the first Black man to hold the position.
“We will invest in programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including an additional $100 million for air quality grants to states and tribes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on a local and regional scale.” Michael Regan, EPA Administrator said.
He is also the first to deal with a Supreme Court dominated by ultra-conservative justices.
On June 29, the court curbed the power of the EPA’s power, ruling that it does not have the authority to set limits on carbon emissions from existing power plants.
The decision, which like others is not in agreement with most Americans wishes, will slow its ability to respond to the climate crisis, but “does not take the EPA out of the game,” Regan said.
“Over the past 18 months or so, [the EPA] has done a really good job of focusing on the full suite of climate pollutants,” he said.
“Power plants play a significant role in this larger picture and that’s why the Supreme Court’s ruling is disappointing, because it’s slowing down the momentum of not only curtailing climate change impacts, but the globally competitive aspects that this country can seize to create jobs and grow economic opportunities.”
President Biden had set a goal for an emissions-free power sector by 2035 and yesterday said the ruling was “another devastating decision that aims to take our country backwards.”
“While this decision risks damaging our nation’s ability to keep our air clean and combat climate change, I will not relent in using my lawful authorities to protect public health and tackle the climate crisis,” he said in a statement.
Regan said the EPA was taking time to review the ruling and he called on Americans to speak out.
“When we see the setbacks, we will take these punches, absorb them, but then come back with a counterpunch,” he said.
“We’re going to move forward with every legal authority to regulate climate pollution and protect communities that we have.
“Rulings like [this] prevent us from moving forward as quickly as we would like. So, Americans should use their voices as much as possible to ensure that we can move forward and do the things that the American people would like for us to do.”
The Biden administration came into office with the most ambitious climate agenda of any president, including the pledge to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in half by the end of this decade, based on 2005 levels.
“The Court’s ruling, obviously, puts a speed bump in the path of the important work that this agency and other agencies would like to pursue. We will continue to keep our eye on the Court now and in the future,” Regan said.
Addressing environmental racism
In a recent interview on the NNPA broadcast, “Let it Be Known,” Regan said the bipartisan infrastructure bill provides an opportunity to finally rid America of poisonous lead pipes and free communities of color of the toxins that have polluted their neighborhoods for centuries.
The bipartisan infrastructure law invests $3.5 billion in cleaning up superfund sites and addressing the nation’s legacy of pollution, he stated.
Regan said the law delivers more than $50 billion to EPA to improve America’s drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure.
Further, it provides $15 billion to the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) for Lead Service Line Replacement, $4 billion to the Drinking Water SRF for Emerging Contaminants, and $5 billion to Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Grants to address emerging contaminants.
“There are still 6 to 10 million lead services lines in cities and towns across the country, many in communities of color and low-income neighborhoods,” Regan said.
Because of the investments in the infrastructure law, millions of American families will no longer have to fear the harmful health effects caused by lead and other pollutants in their water, Regan asserted.
Regan said in each location he visits, he’s sure to invite the national media to accurately report what’s going on in communities across the nation.
“The bipartisan infrastructure provides resources for our communities. There are matching grants and forgivable loans, which means more of our communities have an opportunity to compete for these grants,” he stated.
“We are also making $50 million available for technical assistance to help our communities to become more competitive. I’ve written a letter to every governor in the country outlining the criteria by which we believe those resources should be spent.”
Regan said he developed a passion for public service as a young person.
His father graduated from North Carolina A&T and served in Vietnam, working as an agricultural extension agent and with the national guard.
For 40 years, Regan’s mother worked as a nurse.
“I grew up with the desire to contribute to society because of what I saw in my home,” he exclaimed.
Regan studied environmental science and earth science.
Notably, he said Biden’s proposed 2023 budget request for EPA provides $11.9 billion to advance key priorities, including tackling the climate crisis, delivering environmental justice, protecting air quality, upgrading the nation’s aging water infrastructure, and rebuilding core functions at the Agency.
Regan said EPA continues to prioritize addressing climate change with the focus and resources the crisis demands.
“At EPA, we know both climate mitigation and adaptation are essential components of the strategy to reduce the threats and impact of climate change,” Regan said.
“We will invest in programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including an additional $100 million for air quality grants to states and tribes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on a local and regional scale.”
Regan further acknowledged that the communities hardest hit by pollution and climate change are most often communities of color, Indigenous communities, rural communities, and poor communities.
“For generations, many of these vulnerable communities have been overburdened with higher instances of polluted air, water, and land,” Regan said.
“This inequity of environmental protection is not just an environmental justice issue but also a civil rights concern. Neither an individual’s skin color nor the wealth of their zip code should determine whether they have clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, or healthy environments in which their children can play.
“I am not afraid to enforce the laws on the books to make sure our children are breathing clean air.”
The NNPA Newswire contributed to this report.
