Evironmental Destruction a MAGA implemetation

[Jitendra Hydonus]

I was in Los Angeles in 1975 -80 when
The only time you could get a view of the mountains around the city was after a long rain. I went back in 2005 and you could see the montains almost daily. The MAGA people are once again attempting to polute all our major cities by losening all envirinmental standards.

[mccoy]

I was in LA in 1991-2 and there was the haze. But I discovered that the August sun, under that haze, did not burn. I got tanned without burning. It filtered UVB rays.

I told it to my Italian American friend. He retorted: Ah well, it protects you from skin cancer, but it may give you lung cancer'.

[Jitendra Hydonus]

Many people know that the air we breathe is important, but why? Air pollution may sometimes be invisible, but it can leave a big imprint on human health. In fact, evidence shows that air pollution can impact human health in more ways than previously imagined.

Two types of pollution are dominant in the U.S.: ozone and particle pollution. Both of these pollutants are tracked in American Lung Association's annual "State of the Air" report. These two pollutants threaten the health and lives of millions of Americans. How? Here are the "Terrible 10" health risks from breathing polluted air:

Premature death: Science shows that both short-term and long-term exposure to unhealthy air can shorten your life and lead to premature death. Medical experts have known about this risk for decades —remember our blog about the great smog event depicted in "The Crown"?
Asthma attacks: Breathing ozone and particle pollution can lead to increased asthma attacks, which can result in visits to the emergency room and hospital admissions, not to mention missed work and school.

Cardiovascular disease: Air pollution can increase the risk of both heart attacks and stroke.

Lung cancer: In 2013, the World Health Organization determined that particle pollution can cause lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the U.S.
Developmental damage: Exposure to air pollution can slow and stunt lung development in growing children, harming their health now and reducing their lung function as adults.
Susceptibility to infections: Air pollution increases the risk of lung infections, especially in children.

Worsened COPD symptoms: Exposure to air pollution can make it even harder for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to breathe. Severe symptoms can lead to hospitalization and even death.

Lung tissue swelling and irritation: Even people with healthy lungs are susceptible to irritation and swelling. For those living with chronic lung diseases, such as asthma and COPD, these effects can be especially harmful.

Low infant birth weight: Some studies show exposure to air pollution may increase the risk of low infant birth weight and infant mortality.

Wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath: Like many of the other conditions in this list, these can be caused by both long-term exposure and short-term exposure to high levels of air pollutants.

The list doesn't end here. For example, new research is uncovering links between the air we breathe and mental health concerns. The more scientists look at this invisible threat, the more they find that air pollution poses a serious threat to our nation's health.

Our nation has much more pollution to clean up. The Lung Association works to ensure that the air we breathe is clean and safe. Learn more about how polluted air can make you sick and how we are fighting to keep our air and nation healthy.

I was in Los Angeles in 1975 -80 when
The only time you could get a view of the mountains around the city was after a long rain. I went back in 2005 and you could see the montains almost all the time.       MAGA people are once again attempting to polute all our major cities by losening all envirinmental standards  

[Jitendra Hydonus]

d it be that this is not just about delivering the world to oligarchs and corporations – not just about wringing as much profit from living systems as they can? Could it be that they want to see the destruction of the habitable planet?

We know that Trump’s overriding purpose is power. We have seen that no amount of power appears to satisfy his craving. So let’s consider power’s ultimate destination. It is to become not only an emperor, but the last of the emperors: to close the chapter on civilisation. It is to scratch your name indelibly upon a geological epoch. Look on my works, ye vermin, and despair.

It’s true, of course, that many of his actions amount to standard capitalist looting, released from the feeble regulatory restraints of previous administrations. This week Trump ordered the mass destruction of national forests and other protected lands by the timber industry, to be overseen by the US Forest Service, whose new boss was previously vice-president of a timber company. The results will include heartbreaking losses of wildlife and rare ecosystems, and a heightened risk of wildfires. Trump justified his order with that classic dictator’s gambit: a purported “emergency”.

He has used the same excuse to trigger a new wave of fossil-fuel projects, granting them “emergency” permits to override environmental protections. This is likely to cause the poisoning of wetlands and water supplies. Overseeing the assault is the new energy secretary, Chris Wright, previously CEO of a fracking company.

Guardian

[Jitendra Hydonus]

Climate coalition launches lawsuit against Trump freeze
The lawsuit represents the latest salvo in a battle with the Trump administration over the agency's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
A coalition of organizations granted $7 billion in federal funds for climate and housing projects sued the Trump administration and Citibank on Saturday to restore its access to the money.
Climate United says it has been unable to retrieve the money it was supposed to get from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and has received no explanation from EPA or Citibank, which is managing $20 billion in fund grants under an arrangement with the federal government.
The suit asks a judge to issue injunctions ordering Citibank to disburse the money and prohibiting EPA from interfering with the funding.
The lawsuit represents the latest salvo over the Trump’s administration’s efforts to claw back congressionally appropriated dollars and dismantle former President Joe Biden’s climate policies. The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund is a big target as it is the largest program in Democrats’ 2022 climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, maintains that the EPA and the bank are unlawfully withholding the money — echoing Democrats’ broader accusation that President Donald Trump’s efforts to hold back already appropriated and obligated dollars violate both contract law and the Constitution.
POLITICO earlier reported that the Justice Department is investigating the climate grants and has ordered recipients to testify in federal court later this month. Last month, a senior federal prosecutor in Washington resigned after complaining that her supervisors had pressured her to launch a criminal probe of the funding without sufficient evidence.
Spokespeople for EPA could not be immediately reached for comment about the new lawsuit. Citibank spokesperson Mark Costiglio said the company is reviewing the suit.
The suit accuses the EPA of violating the Administrative Procedure Act, calling the agency’s suspension or termination of the grant arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion or otherwise unlawful. It also alleges that EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin violated the Fifth Amendment’s due process clause, citing multiple public statements by Zeldin criticizing the climate program and outlining his intentions to freeze the funding.
Zeldin has repeatedly condemned the climate program as a “green slush fund” and accused the Biden administration of trying to evade oversight by rushing the money out the door before Trump took office. Trump himself weighed in during his address to Congress on Tuesday, pointing to one part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund as an example of “appalling waste.”
But the EPA has not issued a written determination that Climate United failed to comply with the terms of its grant agreement or presented any evidence of waste, fraud or other abuse, the lawsuit says.
“EPA has failed to provide Climate United with a reasoned explanation for its actions or a meaningful opportunity to object or to be heard,” the suit says.
The complaint also accuses Citibank of breach of contract for failing to disburse the grant funds. It says Citibank failed to comply with Climate United requests to access its funds on Feb. 18 and Feb. 21 without offering “any legal or factual basis” for denying those and subsequent requests to disburse dollars.
In his statement, Costiglio said Citibank “has been working with the federal government in its efforts to address government officials' concerns regarding this federal grant program. Our role as financial agent does not involve any discretion over which organizations receive grant funds. Citi will of course comply with any judicial decision.”
The $7 billion is meant to finance electric vehicle charging infrastructure, energy-efficient home construction and renewable energy projects.
Climate United said it does not have other funding to replace the frozen money and that private investment is not a viable replacement — the intent of the program was to use public funds to draw investment into areas the private sector historically avoided. The coalition said it has already been forced to defer compensation for certain employees to preserve cash, will run out of funds shortly to pay operating expenses without another funding source and could have to cut hours and furlough staff.
"Climate United’s access to its grant funding should be restored," the organization said in its lawsuit.
Zack Colman contributed to this report.

[mccoy]

Lots of US$$$$ for the lawyers...