WASHINGTON— More than 100 groups urged Congress today to oppose the Senate permitting bill, which contains sweeping provisions gutting protections for hundreds of millions of acres of public lands across America, including the Arctic, Boundary Waters wilderness, Bears Ears National Monument and countless other treasured wildlands.
“Handing our public lands over to corporate polluters and tech billionaires is a staggering betrayal of all Americans. It will put irreplaceable public lands at the mercy of industries bent on exploiting them,” said Ashley C. Nunes, public lands policy specialist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “This disastrous bill would permanently scar our natural heritage and sacrifice clean water, wildlife and the health of our communities just to make the wealthiest people on Earth even richer.”
The bill, introduced by Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Mike Lee (R-Utah), would rubberstamp destructive projects including mining, logging, oil and gas drilling, and fracked gas pipelines intended to power data centers. Polluting projects would be fast tracked regardless of their harm to public lands and the water, wildlife, cultural resources and recreation these lands support.
The bill’s so-called “project certainty” provisions would lock in near-permanent fossil fuel dominance and hand extractive industries control of public lands into the future.
“Here in Utah where 73% of voters oppose fast-tracking oil, gas and mining projects on public land, we say America’s worst ideas come from the desk of Sen. Mike Lee,” said Olivia Juarez, GreenLatinos public land program director. “This bill exemplifies what we mean. Its only guarantee is blocked public land access, dangerous air quality, and reckless exclusion of public input on how we treat the places we should pass on to future generations in a better condition than we received them. It’s a handout to the fossil fuel and AI industries, and a rubber stamp on wildlife extinction and climate disaster.”
The legislation also gives mining companies, including foreign-owned mining conglomerates, unprecedented rights to permanently seize public lands for roads, pipelines, waste dumps and other sprawling infrastructure. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, hard rock mining is the top source of toxic pollution in the country.
“This bill is nothing short of a coup for corporate polluters and extractive industry executives who have been clamoring for a way to gut our nation’s most important bedrock environmental laws,” said Josh Osher, public policy director at Western Watersheds Project. “Instead of ushering in a green energy transition, this bill will deliver a massive blow to biodiversity, cultural resources, and public lands while silencing the voices of Tribes, the public, and the advocates who fight for their protection.”
The permitting bill severely undermines the National Historic Preservation Act and Tribal sovereignty by making the federal government’s responsibility to meaningfully consult with Tribal Nations optional, even if a project threatens their ancestral lands, sacred sites or cultural resources.
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The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
GreenLatinos (note: GreenLatinos is one word) 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.
Western Watersheds Project is a nonprofit environmental conservation group working to protect and restore wildlife and watersheds throughout the American West.
Presidential vanity project runs amok the historic, healthy trees of the National Mall.
WASHINGTON – On the weekend of October 10, at least 430 healthy, mature trees were removed from the East Potomac Golf Course, a National Park Service-managed unit of the National Mall. Examining past social media posts published by President Trump, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes concluded, “that government officials raced to undertake the [tree management plan] because President Trump demands haste on his redesign….” Fast Company reports that healthy, mature oak trees, willows and maple trees were among the removed trees. Other trees were potentially effected–the National Park Service inventory of the site confirms that historic Civilian Conservation Corps-planted cedar trees, and cherry trees, “thought to be the sole surviving specimens of the first cherry trees donated by Japan from the city of Tokyo, which arrived in Washington, DC in January 1910,” are among the golf course’s tree inventory.
Yesterday, the Trump Administration announced a months-long closure of the golf course for major renovation. This announcement follows recent findings that an expedited work order directly from the Oval Office led to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool damage.
In response, GreenLatinos issues the following statements:
“Through our Urban Greening Initiative, GreenLatinos and our community partners have planted 2,399 trees, distributed 600 trees, inventoried nearly 20,000 trees, and provided forestry workforce training to 96 individuals nationwide. These efforts have helped mitigate more than 10 million gallons of stormwater runoff and remove approximately 24,000 pounds of air pollutants. Yet another one of President Trump’s vanity projects has left our nation more vulnerable to climate disasters and without another culturally important green space, underscoring the critical importance of investing in urban forestry and stewardship programs like ours in communities across the country.” said Pedro Hernández, GreenLatinos’ California State Director.
“Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has failed the National Park Service by allowing the President to run amok the historic, healthy and mature trees of the National Mall. In light of the Trump administration blocking nearly $26 million in National Park Service funding for 133 national park project agreements related to wildfire mitigation, trail maintenance, invasive species management, cultural resource preservation and more, it’s evident that President Trump is abandoning projects that matter to families for his vanity projects,” said Olivia Juarez, GreenLatinos Public Land Program Director.
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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.
GreenLatinos advierte que el plan para debilitar las protecciones contra el metano reduciría las salvaguardas frente a la contaminación dañina del petróleo y gas en comunidades que ya enfrentan impactos desproporcionados en la salud y el clima
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Hoy, el administrador de la Agencia de Protección Ambiental de Estados Unidos (EPA, por sus siglas en inglés), Lee Zeldin, anunció planes para eliminar disposiciones clave de las normas de 2024 que regulan las emisiones de metano de las operaciones de petróleo y gas. El anuncio adelanta una futura propuesta de la EPA que se espera busque debilitar protecciones como el Programa de Respuesta a Súper Emisores (Super Emitter Program) y los requisitos para pozos de baja producción.
El anuncio representa el paso más reciente para debilitar las protecciones federales diseñadas para reducir el metano y otros contaminantes dañinos del aire provenientes de las operaciones de petróleo y gas. La administración Trump ya ha retrasado la implementación de algunas partes de la norma de 2024. Sin embargo, los cambios más amplios anunciados hoy todavía no han sido formalmente propuestos ni finalizados.
GreenLatinos se opone firmemente a esta acción.
El metano es un potente contaminante climático, más de 80 veces más potente que el dióxido de carbono durante un periodo de 20 años. Con frecuencia, se libera junto con compuestos orgánicos volátiles que contribuyen a la formación de smog y sustancias tóxicas como el benceno, un conocido carcinógeno. En conjunto, estos contaminantes contribuyen a ataques de asma, enfermedades respiratorias, enfermedades del corazón y otros graves problemas de salud.
Las comunidades latinas enfrentan una carga desproporcionada de esta contaminación. Aproximadamente 1.6 millones de latinos viven a menos de media milla de pozos de petróleo y gas, donde la exposición a la contaminación dañina del aire forma parte de la vida cotidiana. Millones más viven en estados como Texas, Nuevo México, Colorado y California, donde la producción de petróleo y gas continúa afectando la calidad del aire y la salud pública. En todo el país, la contaminación causada por la liberación y quema de gases de combustibles fósiles contribuye a más de 700 muertes prematuras y 73,000 ataques de asma infantil cada año.
Se proyectaba que las normas de la EPA de 2024 reducirían en 80% las emisiones de metano de las fuentes de petróleo y gas cubiertas por la regulación y evitarían 58 millones de toneladas de contaminación por metano hasta 2038. Eso equivale aproximadamente a retirar casi mil millones de automóviles de las carreteras durante un año. Las normas también evitarían que 16 millones de toneladas de contaminación que contribuye al smog y 590,000 toneladas de contaminantes peligrosos lleguen al aire que respiran nuestras comunidades.
Debilitar estas protecciones aumentaría la contaminación, elevaría los costos de salud y agravaría los impactos de la crisis climática, en un momento en que ya existen tecnologías accesibles para reducir las emisiones de metano. Las familias trabajadoras no deberían pagar el precio de eliminar protecciones que ayudan a mantener nuestro aire más limpio, nuestras comunidades más saludables y nuestro clima más seguro.
Tras el anuncio de hoy, líderes federales y estatales de GreenLatinos emitieron las siguientes declaraciones:
“El plan de la EPA para debilitar las protecciones contra el metano sería otro beneficio para la industria del petróleo y gas pagado con la salud de nuestras comunidades. Las familias latinas ya viven de manera desproporcionada cerca de instalaciones de petróleo y gas y cargan con los impactos de la contaminación tóxica que se libera junto con el metano. Debilitar estas protecciones significaría más contaminación prevenible en comunidades que ya enfrentan una carga demasiado grande. La EPA debería fortalecer las protecciones para las comunidades que están en primera línea de la contaminación, no desmantelarlas.”
Irene Burga, Directora de Justicia Climática y Aire Limpio, GreenLatinos
“Las familias de Colorado ya están respirando las consecuencias. La región metropolitana de Denver y el norte de Front Range continúa en incumplimiento severo de las normas federales de ozono y se está acercando a la categoría de incumplimiento extremo. Las operaciones de petróleo y gas generan casi una cuarta parte de la contaminación de ozono causada por actividades humanas en la región. Debilitar las protecciones contra el metano deshace años de avances logrados mediante la colaboración entre autoridades, la industria y las comunidades. La Ley de Justicia Ambiental de Colorado establece que un medio ambiente limpio es un derecho. Merecemos políticas que reduzcan la contaminación, protejan la salud pública y garanticen aire limpio para todas las familias.”
Patricia Garcia-Nelson, Defensora de Transición Justa de Combustibles Fósiles en Colorado, GreenLatinos Colorado
“En el sureste de Nuevo México, las comunidades de la Cuenca Pérmica están en primera línea de la contaminación por metano. La Cuenca Pérmica emite más metano que cualquier otra cuenca de petróleo y gas del país. Esto aumenta los riesgos de contaminación dañina del aire para las comunidades cercanas y, al mismo tiempo, acelera la crisis climática. Debilitar las protecciones contra el metano significa pedirles a las comunidades que están en primera línea que carguen con costos aún mayores. Las familias de Nuevo México merecen protecciones sólidas que cuiden nuestra salud, nuestro aire y nuestro futuro.”
Carlos Matutes, Director del Programa de Nuevo México, GreenLatinos New Mexico
“Texas es hogar de millones de personas que viven cerca de infraestructura de petróleo y gas, muchas de las cuales ya enfrentan una exposición desproporcionada a la contaminación del aire y sus impactos en la salud. Debilitar las protecciones contra el metano significa más contaminación en nuestras comunidades, mayores riesgos para la salud de nuestras familias y más impactos climáticos en todo el estado. Las familias de Texas merecen aire limpio y protecciones sólidas que pongan a las personas por encima de las ganancias de quienes contaminan.”
Rogelio Meixueiro, Defensor Comunitario de Texas, GreenLatinos Texas
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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.
GreenLatinos warns planned rollback would weaken safeguards against harmful oil and gas pollution in communities already bearing disproportionate health and climate burdens
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announced plans to roll back key provisions of the 2024 methane standards for oil and gas operations. The announcement previews a forthcoming EPA proposal expected to target protections including the Super Emitter Program and requirements covering low-producing wells.
The announcement marks the latest step toward weakening federal safeguards designed to reduce methane and harmful air pollution from oil and gas operations. The Trump administration has already delayed implementation of portions of the 2024 rule, while the broader rollback announced today has not yet been proposed or finalized.
GreenLatinos strongly opposes this action.
Methane is a powerful climate pollutant that is more than 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over 20 years. It is often released alongside smog-forming volatile organic compounds and toxic chemicals such as benzene, a known carcinogen. Together, these pollutants contribute to asthma attacks, respiratory illnesses, heart disease, and other serious health impacts.
Latino communities bear a disproportionate share of this pollution burden. Approximately 1.6 million Latinos live within a half mile of oil and gas wells, where exposure to harmful air pollution is a daily reality. Millions more live in states such as Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, and California, where oil and gas development continues to impact air quality and public health. Across the country, pollution from fossil fuel venting and flaring contributes to more than 700 premature deaths and 73,000 childhood asthma attacks each year.
The EPA's 2024 methane standards were projected to reduce methane emissions from covered oil and gas sources by 80 percent, preventing 58 million tons of methane pollution through 2038, the equivalent of removing nearly one billion cars from the road for a year. The standards would also prevent 16 million tons of smog-forming pollution and 590,000 tons of hazardous air pollutants from entering the air communities breathe.
Weakening these safeguards would increase pollution, raise health costs, and worsen climate impacts at a time when affordable technologies already exist to reduce methane emissions. Working families should not be forced to pay the price for rolling back protections that keep our air cleaner, our communities healthier, and our climate safer.
Following today's announcement, GreenLatinos' federal and state leaders issued the following statements:
“EPA’s plan to roll back methane safeguards would be another handout to the oil and gas industry paid for with the health of our communities. Latino families already live disproportionately close to oil and gas facilities and bear the burden of the toxic air pollution released alongside methane. Weakening these protections would mean more preventable pollution in communities already carrying far too much. EPA should be strengthening protections for frontline communities, not dismantling them.” Irene Burga, Climate Justice & Clean Air Director, GreenLatinos
"Colorado families are already breathing the consequences. The Denver Metro and North Front Range region remains in severe violation of federal ozone standards and is nearing extreme nonattainment. Oil and gas operations contribute nearly one quarter of the man-made ozone pollution in the region. Weakening methane protections undoes years of collaborative progress among regulators, industry, and communities. Colorado's Environmental Justice Act declares a clean environment is a right; we deserve policies that cut pollution, protect public health, and ensure clean air for every family." Patricia Garcia-Nelson, Colorado Fossil Fuel Just Transition Advocate, GreenLatinos Colorado
"In southeastern New Mexico, communities in the Permian Basin are on the front lines of methane pollution. The Permian Basin emits more methane than any other oil and gas basin in the country, placing nearby communities at increased risk from harmful air pollution while accelerating the climate crisis. Weakening methane protections means asking frontline communities to bear even greater costs. New Mexicans deserve strong safeguards that protect our health, our air, and our future." Carlos Matutes, New Mexico Program Director, GreenLatinos New Mexico
"Texas is home to millions of people living near oil and gas infrastructure, many of whom already face disproportionate exposure to air pollution and its health impacts. Weakening methane protections means more pollution in our communities, greater health risks for our families, and more climate impacts across our state. Texans deserve clean air and strong safeguards that put people before polluter profits." Rogelio Meixueiro, Texas Community Advocate, GreenLatinos Texas
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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.
