Rollback threatens public health, worsens climate pollution, and shifts costs onto frontline communities
WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 28, 2026)— Today, GreenLatinos condemned the Trump administration's new proposal to weaken federal methane pollution standards, warning that the changes could increase harmful air pollution, worsen climate impacts, and shift additional health and economic costs onto Latino families.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to eliminate the Super Emitter Program, weaken requirements for certain low-producing oil and gas wells, and loosen restrictions on flaring and other pollution controls established under the 2024 methane rule. The original standards were projected to prevent approximately 58 million tons of methane pollution between 2024 and 2038.
“Latino families are already paying the price for pollution through higher medical bills, lost wages, and worsening climate disasters,” said Irene Burga, Climate Justice & Clean Air Program Director, GreenLatinos. “Weakening these protections does not make life more affordable for our communities. It shifts the costs of pollution onto families while allowing the oil and gas industry to avoid responsibility.”
Pollution from oil and gas operations can contribute to asthma, respiratory illness, and other serious health risks. Research estimates that flaring and venting alone are associated with $7.4 billion in annual health damages, including more than 73,000 asthma exacerbations among children.
“In states like New Mexico, where oil and gas development is widespread, Latino and rural communities are already living with the consequences of industrial pollution,” said Carlos Matutes, GreenLatinos New Mexico State Program. “Families should not have to choose between protecting their health and making ends meet. We need enforceable standards that hold polluters accountable.”
“Colorado communities have worked hard to advance stronger protections from oil and gas pollution,” said Patricia Garcia-Nelson, GreenLatinos Colorado State Program. “Rolling back federal safeguards threatens that progress and leaves frontline families vulnerable to pollution that can harm their health and quality of life. Clean air protections should be strengthened, not weakened.”
“In Texas, oil and gas production is unfortunately embedded in neighborhoods,” said Rogelio Meixueiro, GreenLatinos Texas State Program. “Families living near these facilities deserve protections from harmful emissions, not policies that allow companies to pollute and waste.”
The rollback also threatens progress in addressing climate change. Methane is more than 80 times as powerful as carbon dioxide over a 20-year period, contributing to extreme heat, drought, and other climate-related disasters that disproportionately burden Latino communities.
GreenLatinos calls on EPA to maintain strong, enforceable methane standards that protect public health, reduce harmful emissions, and prevent frontline communities from bearing additional costs of oil and gas pollution.
###
About GreenLatinos
NOTE: GreenLatinos is ONE WORD. GreenLatinos convenes an active comunidad of environmental, conservation, and climate justice leaders rooted in the power and wisdom of our culture, united to uplift our priorities, and driven to secure our political, economic, cultural, and environmental liberation.
