Why The White House Silenced EPA On Greenhouse Gases

The Washington Post today follows up on Wednesday’s New York Times story on how the White House refused to open EPA emails containing a document saying that greenhouse gases threaten health and the environment. That document responded to a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court query.

An important takeaway point from the Post piece comes from the executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies. The NACAA represents air pollution control agencies in 53 U.S. states and territories. Director S. William Becker summed up nicely why the White House has gone to so much trouble and through so much public embarrassment to silence the EPA on greenhouse gases:

The White House has found EPA’s draft finding to be radioactive in three key areas. It validates the approval of California’s waiver to regulate greenhouse gases from motor vehicles. It demonstrates that the Transportation Department’s proposed fuel economy standards fall far short of what is technologically feasible and cost-effective. And it makes a strong case supporting how the existing Clean Air Act can be used to regulate greenhouse gases.

As a result, the EPA has once again been forced to produce a document that its scientists don’t fully stand behind.