The NRDC Is Suing the EPA to Protect Mercury Pollution Limits
4 days ago
The NRDC Is Suing the EPA to Protect Mercury Pollution Limits
https://psmag.com/did-the-white-house-just-put-us-at-greater-risk-for-mercury-poisoning-f3f080361b1b#.8mypu8jlj
The White House is rolling back environmental and public-health regulations put in place in the final weeks of Barack Obamas presidency, and non-governmental organizations are fighting back.
By Kate Wheeling
Fresh Red Snapper lies on ice at the San Francisco Fish Company. (Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
On Wednesday morning, the Natural Resources Defense Council filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for rolling back a regulation meant to protect the public from exposure to mercury, a potentially dangerous neurotoxin.
Shortly after taking office, President Donald Trump went after several regulations put in place in the final weeks of the Obama administration. On January 20th, Trumps chief of staff, Reince Priebus, told federal agencies to rescind any finalized regulations that had been submitted to the Federal Registera governmental rulebook of sortsbut not yet published there, which included the mercury rule limiting the amount of the metal that could be discharged by dentists. The NRDC is arguing in the lawsuit that the EPA cant just roll back the rule without public notice or a comment period.
The Trump White House ordered the EPA and other agencies to violate the law, the NRDCs litigation director, Aaron Colangelo, said in a statement. That puts Americans at greater risk of exposure to this dangerous neurotoxin, which can do harm even in tiny amounts.
Americas Power Plant Problem
There are many sources of mercury pollution: coal-fired power plants, mining operations, and the dental industry, to name just a few. When dentists wash fillingswhich contain mercury among other metalsdown the drain, the mercury becomes converted into a more toxic form called methylmercury in our waterways. The toxin is ingested by fish, which can be caught and served to people who would then be unknowingly eating high levels of the metal. Methylmercury exposure is particularly harmful to early brain development, and prenatal exposure is linked to learning disabilities.................
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