Dear Friend of the Bay,

For weeks now, our nation has been ravaged by a pandemic that has forced communities to face unprecedented challenges and prioritize public health more than ever. As states have worked to protect their citizens, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a proposed rule that would limit the government’s use of science to regulate harmful pollution and the impact on public health. Before Monday’s deadline, tell EPA: Fulfill your mission to protect human health by safeguarding the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the land on which we live!

If this rule were to be adopted, it would have significant impacts on the work to restore the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers and stream, including threatening the underlying pollution reductions necessary to achieve the goals of the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint.

We have only hours left to take action and let EPA know that restricting science in regulatory processes is unacceptable. Act before the May 18 deadline and raise your voice on this important issue!

Thank you for all you do to save the Bay,

Denise Stranko
Federal Legislative and Policy Manager
Chesapeake Bay Foundation

---- Forwarded Message ----
From: Denise Stranko, CBF
Sent: Saturday, April 4, 2020
Subject: Act Now: Do not let the EPA silence important scientific studies!

Dear Friend of the Bay,

Listen to the science. That’s the message health experts are sending—over and over—as we all work to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. But at a time when science should be front and center, the Environmental Protection Agency is pushing through a proposed rule—the so-called Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science Proposed Rulemaking—that would limit the government’s use of science to regulate harmful pollution. Now more than ever, protecting our nation’s public health is essential. Join us—before the May 18 deadline—in urging EPA not to silence important scientific studies!

One of the key components of the proposal is to restrict the use of scientific studies that don’t reveal underlying data—such as the identity of study participants. This means that the critical information provided by studies like Harvard’s 1993 “Six Cities Study” that definitively linked premature deaths to air pollution, would not be able to be used in revisions to or in the development of federal programs regulating air and water pollution.

EPA itself has long held the view that protecting the identity of participants is essential to their participation in important studies. Ignoring these types of studies will make it much more difficult for the federal government to demonstrate that health benefits outweigh the costs of regulating industry, thus curtailing the government’s ability to protect our nation’s health and the environment.

If this proposal were to move forward, the consequences for the health of the Bay and those of us who call it home could be devastating. This proposal threatens the Bay cleanup effort and its associated economic benefits. The air and water pollution regulations impacted by this rule are exactly those the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint is relying on to restore the Bay.

This proposal is part of a broader deregulatory agenda that the EPA is aggressively pursuing, rushing to finalize rules while the nation is under a state of emergency. CBF has urged the government to take measures to ensure all citizens can participate in the federal rulemaking process, as many people who might normally engage are consumed with taking care of themselves, their families, and their businesses.

EPA—against CBF's and many other organizations' urging—has refused to stop proposing and finalizing regulations even during this national emergency. Instead the agency is deciding to proceed or delay the regulatory process on a case-by-case basis, actually making it more difficult for citizens to participate. And at the same time, EPA has announced it will relax enforcement actions against regulated entities that claim they can not comply with their obligations under federal law due to COVID-19.

Now is not the time to limit science or the public’s voice in the decision-making process. Act now! Tell EPA: Fulfill your mission to protect human health by safeguarding the air we breathe, water we drink and land on which we live. Listen to the science.

Please stay safe and healthy in these uncertain times.

Thank you for all you do to save the Bay,

Denise Stranko
Federal Legislative and Policy Manager
Chesapeake Bay Foundation

P.S. Want more details on the EPA's so-called Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science Proposed Rulemaking proposal? Learn more on our website and then take action to stop the EPA from silencing scientific studies.