Trump’s EPA plans to ignore health effects of air pollution

The article discusses the Trump administration’s plan to change how the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) evaluates the health effects of air pollution, specifically by abandoning the long-standing practice of assigning a monetary value to human life in cost-benefit analyses of pollution controls. Since the Reagan administration, the EPA has used this valuation to justify regulations that reduce harmful pollutants like ozone and fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which are linked to serious health issues including asthma, heart disease, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and even low birth weight in infants. These pollutants contribute to millions of deaths globally each year, underscoring the importance of regulatory measures. The policy shift comes amid increasing reliance on dirtier energy sources, such as natural gas turbines powering data centers, exemplified by Elon Musk’s xAI facility in a heavily polluted region near Memphis, Tennessee. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has expressed support for the Trump administration’s move, viewing it as a “common-sense” effort to rebalance regulations.