Complete list of press releases

(Washington) The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit today declined Spire’s request to revisit its decision that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s orders granting Spire authority to construct and operate a 65-mile pipeline in Illinois and Missouri were fatally flawed.

Although FERC itself did not seek rehearing, Spire asked the full D.C. Circuit to rehear the June 21 decision’s finding on the appropriate remedy in the proceeding, which found that vacating the FERC orders approving the pipeline was the appropriate remedy given the seriousness of their deficiencies. Today’s ruling, from which there was no recorded dissent, denies Spire’s request for panel and en banc rehearing.

“The court has appropriately rejected the request to revisit its initial decision,” said Natalie Karas, Senior Director and Lead Counsel for EDF. “FERC has the authority and fact-finding tools to craft a remedy that fulfills the need for reliable service while safeguarding other public interests.” 

In June, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit unanimously vacated FERC’s approval of Spire’s Certificate to Operate, finding that FERC did not sufficiently analyze whether the new pipeline was needed and that FERC improperly ignored record evidence of self-dealing between the Spire affiliates. Following the court’s June decision, Spire filed an emergency application to FERC seeking to continue operating the pipeline. In response, EDF supported action from FERC to ensure reliable service to St. Louis customers, while recommending that any temporary certificate should be limited and subject to strict conditions.

More rigorous oversight by FERC of affiliate contracts, in which one arm of a company signs a contract with another, could prevent the imposition of unnecessary costs on utility customers and lock-in of greenhouse gas pollution over the 50-year life of new pipelines. EDF has asked FERC to apply more stringent review of all new infrastructure in its pending proceeding to address the way it approves new pipelines.

More background on the Spire case can be found here.

(MIAMI, FL – Aug. 31, 2021) Earlier today, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced the agency will update their proposed Back Bay Study to incorporate more equitable, nature-based solutions as it seeks to address sea level rise and flooding in Miami and along Biscayne Bay. This news comes in response to an outpouring of feedback from residents, business leaders and organizations including Environmental Defense Fund that have advocated for such an approach. 

“Healthy coral reefs and mangroves are great for Florida’s environment and economy. Now, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recognizes that these are also vital tools to build long-term climate resilience. EDF has advocated that the Corps include nature-based solutions in Miami’s Back Bay study, and we are encouraged to see the Corps respond to feedback from EDF and others. We applaud the Corps for embracing equitable, nature-based solutions to build climate resilience in Miami, and we encourage agency leaders to prioritize similar solutions across our state.”

· Dawn Shirreffs, Florida Director, Environmental Defense Fund

 (WASHINGTON – August 31, 2021) As Congress negotiates historic investments in clean energy and climate solutions, a new tool by Evolved Energy Research, commissioned by Environmental Defense Fund, demonstrates that actions to clean up the power and transportation sectors offer the biggest and most cost-effective cuts in carbon pollution now. Carbon-cutting actions at low costs in these two sectors — the two largest sources of emissions in the U.S. economy — could get the U.S. roughly halfway to net-zero carbon emissions from energy and industry by 2050. These actions include boosting deployment of high-quality solar PV and onshore wind, electric efficiency, and electric vehicles (EVs), which align with many of the climate and clean energy policies that have been proposed as part of the reconciliation process in Congress.

These emissions-slashing opportunities are illustrated through a revamped Marginal Abatement Cost (MAC) curve, a tool introduced more than a decade ago and used by policymakers to compare the emissions reduction potential and marginal cost ($ per ton of carbon pollution reduction) of different technologies.

“The electricity and transportation sectors are the lowest hanging fruit for climate progress, offering the biggest and cheapest opportunities to cut carbon pollution right now,” said Morgan Rote, Senior Manager for U.S. Climate at EDF. “With the falling costs of renewable energy and the growing market for electric vehicles, supportive policies like tax credit extensions for EVs and clean energy can rapidly accelerate the emissions cuts we need this decade. This is a winning strategy all-around because cleaning up electricity and transportation will also create new, good-paying jobs and cut harmful air pollution that unfairly burdens low-income communities and communities of color.”

The new marginal abatement cost curve developed by Evolved Energy Research offers a roadmap to net-zero carbon emissions in energy and industry by making several improvements from traditional MAC curves. These include showing how technologies in the energy system can build on one another and offering insights on the time required to develop different technology and their markets. Traditional MAC curves only showcase the cost and emissions impact of a single measure at a single point in time, limiting their use in planning complex pathways to net-zero emissions.

Key takeaways include supporting policies that can deploy cost-effective measures now and funding innovation efforts to make newer technologies more accessible:

• At low costs, carbon-cutting measures in power and transportation could achieve nearly 50% of the emissions cuts needed to get to net-zero carbon emissions from energy and industry by 2050. Many of the supportive policies that can harness these reductions have been proposed in current infrastructure packages, including tax credit extensions for EV adoption and clean energy deployment, infrastructure investments in public EV charging infrastructure, support for domestic manufacturing and supply chains, and more. To maximize even more pollution reductions in these sectors, policymakers will need to implement forward-looking policies, such as modernizing electricity transmission systems to accommodate high deployment levels of renewable energy.
• Investments in newer technologies that are not yet widely available — including zero-carbon fuels that can support shipping, long-haul aviation, and chemicals and steel manufacturing — should be ramped up now and are required if we are to meet our carbon reduction goals. Support for these technologies today, through research and development, demonstration, and deployment funding, will be important for achieving net-zero emissions.

This tool only explores one side of the equation: costs. The benefits of climate policies are not captured in this particular analysis; however, these insights arrive on the heels of a multitude of studies showing that investments in clean power and clean vehicles, trucks and buses will generate massive economic and health gains, including:

• New programs and tax credit extensions to drive investment in new clean electricity infrastructure can create more than 600,000 jobs a year over the next decade.
• Transitioning to an electric grid that is 80% clean energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2030 could prevent an estimated 317,500 premature deaths between now and 2050.
• The reductions in smog and particulate pollution from moving to all electric passenger car sales by 2035 could prevent 98,000 premature deaths and provide $1.6 trillion in cumulative net benefits to Americans by 2050.

Read more about the findings and how to use the cost curve tool in this EDF blog.

(Sacramento, CA — Aug 26, 2021) Today, the California State Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously moved the Multibenefit Land Repurposing Incentive Program bill (AB 252), co-authored  by Assembly Members Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) and Rudy Salas (D-Bakersfield), off of the suspense file to the Senate floor for a vote. The bill, sponsored by EDF, would create a new program to help farmers, water managers and rural communities adapt to more sustainable groundwater use while simultaneously creating new benefits for people and wildlife.

As a result of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, passed in 2014 during the last drought, California regions with the most critically overdrafted groundwater basins will have to balance supply and demand by 2040. To make this transition to sustainable groundwater management, some agricultural land will have to be taken out of production — at least 750,000 acres, roughly equivalent to the size of Yosemite National Park.

AB 252 will help create opportunities on these previously irrigated agricultural lands and ease the transition to balancing groundwater supply and demand. It will create a new program through the California Department of Conservation to provide incentive payments to landowners who reduce groundwater pumping and voluntarily and strategically repurpose at least some portion of their agricultural land to other less water-intensive uses for at least 15 years.

Possibilities for these lands include:

• Restoring habitat for wildlife, including migratory birds, pollinators and endangered species such as the San Joaquin kit fox.
• Creating multibenefit groundwater recharge basins.
• Restoring floodplains.
• Switching to rangeland or dryland farming.
• Developing parks and community recreation areas.

“Our state is facing an unprecedented drought emergency. We are clearly at a tipping point with climate change, and how we respond will shape the future of our state and our agricultural economy.

“Without the right interventions, previously irrigated lands could become a haphazard patchwork of dusty fields with invasive weeds and pests, further impairing air quality where it is already the worst in the country and putting many farmworkers out of work. With measures like AB 252, the state could transform its previously irrigated land into a water-resilient agricultural region with a mosaic of vibrant new land uses, like habitat corridors, multibenefit groundwater recharge areas and outdoor recreational spaces for families.

“We thank Assembly Members Robert Rivas and Rudy Salas for their leadership on AB 252 and look forward to this bill continuing to move through the Legislature and quickly to Governor Newsom’s desk.”

• Ann Hayden, Senior Director, Western Water and Resilient Landscapes

(Sacramento, CA — Aug 26, 2021) Today, the California State Senate Appropriations Committee moved the Climate Crisis Act (AB 1395), co-authored by Assembly Members Al Muratsuchi and Cristina Garcia, off of the suspense file to the Senate floor for debate. The bill would codify California’s commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible and no later than 2045. Additionally, the bill includes provisions to ensure that California directly reduces emissions 90% below 1990 levels by 2045.

“The Climate Crisis Act should be a top priority for legislators as Californians face yet another destructive wildfire season and as the world’s leading climate scientists issue increasingly dire warnings about the costs and frequency of climate-fueled disasters.

“While it’s essential that California act urgently to slash climate-warming pollution this decade, the state also needs a clear long-term vision that aligns with the latest science. This bill will secure our commitment to protect our families and communities, economy and ecosystems from even worse climate damages. Locking in a pathway that gets the state to net-zero by no later than 2045 ensures that the legislature, communities and businesses can start planning, with certainty, for a safer future today.

“How we meet that net-zero target matters enormously — we need to maximize emission reductions from pollution sources as swiftly as possible. At the same time, both nature-based and technology-based solutions that permanently remove carbon from the air will also need to be a part of our toolkit. The Climate Crisis Act ensures that these strategies are deployed with environmental integrity front of mind, and that solutions meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions do not harm local air quality or public health, especially in communities historically overburdened by pollution.

“We thank Assembly Members Al Muratsuchi and Cristina Garcia for their leadership, and are excited to see this bill continue to move through the Senate and quickly to Governor Newsom’s desk.”

• Katelyn Roedner Sutter, Senior Manager for U.S. Climate

(Houston, T.X.) Today the Houston METRO Board of Directors voted to approve a transformational goal to fully electrify the transit agency’s fleet of over 1,300 buses by 2030, in addition to signing off on the development of a Climate Action Plan.

METRO operates the largest transit fleet in the state and one of the largest in the nation, and nearly half of Houston’s climate emissions come from the transportation sector. EDF analysis has found agencies like METRO can save money by transitioning to electric buses, which on average have a total cost of ownership 12% lower than that of diesel buses over a 12-year lifetime.

Houston has a persistent problem with unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone, or smog. Electrifying heavy-duty diesel buses, like the ones in METRO’s fleet, is one of the most cost-effective ways to slash the emissions that contribute to the problem.

“This commitment is a historic win for Houston’s health and climate. Houstonians deserve a modern, clean transit fleet that cuts pollution and saves money, and with an all-electric fleet Houston METRO can deliver. Mayor Turner and the METRO board are to be commended for driving this progress and delivering meaningful climate action for the Houston region.”

• Colin Leyden, Texas Political Director, EDF

In a new article published today in Environmental Research Letters, Environmental Defense Fund and Princeton University researchers show how emissions reductions policies and programs that attain a sufficiently large scale – including large-scale tropical forest protection programs – can drive lasting reductions in carbon dioxide, even if governments and markets change in the future. 

The findings show that achieving emissions reductions over large geographic areas and/or over longer time periods is more important than whether emissions reductions are from fossil fuels or land-based carbon, such as tropical forests. The authors also find rules and procedures for certifying small-scale emissions reductions projects may not make up for lack of scale, and that large national or subnational programs to protect tropical forests provide a model for market-based climate policies more broadly.

“We know living forests are the best technology for getting and keeping carbon out of the atmosphere,” said EDF Senior Director for Tropical Forests and lead author Stephan Schwartzman. “We also know that natural climate solutions are urgently needed to keep warming under 2 degrees Celsius. Now we can see that the scale of actions and policies is critical to ensure that these and other climate solutions are real and lasting.”                             

Key findings from the scientists, economists, academics and policy experts who authored the article are:

• Environmental integrity of crediting approaches is ensured when the approaches are large in scale – both geographical and length of time. 
• By scaling up accounting and implementation of an emissions reduction strategy over a larger political jurisdiction – at the state, country or regional level – an emissions reduction is ensured more robust quantification as well as greater assurance of longevity through systemic changes.
• Large-scale crediting strategies are important to effectively addressing challenges of additionality, leakage and permanence across both fossil and terrestrial mitigation approaches. Leakage happens when an emissions reduction in one place causes emission increases in another; problems of additionality occur when reductions would have happened even without a particular project or program; and permanence issues arise when a reduction at one point in time leads to higher emissions later.  
• Large, jurisdictional-scale tropical forest credits provide a model for other sectors. The findings help address historical misconceptions over the relative robustness of emissions reductions from fossil versus forest and other natural climate solutions.

The article looks at how Brazil’s reductions in Amazon deforestation from 2004 to 2012 have kept as much as 5.38 gigatons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere – even though efforts to undo environmental regulations have been mounting since 2012 and the current government has aggressively promoted Amazon deforestation and invasions of Indigenous territories. Brazil achieved those reductions through large, jurisdictional-scale efforts to reduce deforestation. 

“Achieving large-scale and long-lived emissions reductions while meeting underlying economic demand, as Brazil did in the Amazon, requires systemic changes,” said EDF Chief Natural Resource Economist  and coauthor Ruben Lubowski. “The debate over the effectiveness of carbon credits has largely ignored the issue of scale as a determinant of quality and systemic change. Ramping up accounting and implementation of climate strategies over large, political jurisdictions – at the country or state level – provides greater assurance that estimated emissions reductions are real and durable. Scale matters not just for tropical forests, where jurisdictional standards exist and have been recognized by the Paris Agreement and major compliance markets, but across other sectors as well.”

The authors recommend decision makers in the public and private sectors:

• Transition to large-scale crediting strategies in both regulated and voluntary carbon markets and across terrestrial and fossil sources.
• Enhance transparency over different crediting standards and the use of different types of credits.
• Provide purchase commitments, price guarantees and complementary finance and capacity development to support implementation of jurisdictional (and nested) emissions reductions across all sectors. 

A new public-private initiative known as LEAF (Lowering Emissions through Accelerated Forest Finance) Coalition aims to further validate the principle that large-scale approaches are important for the integrity of climate action. Donor governments and 10 major corporations are mobilizing an initial $1 billion by the end of this year to halting deforestation in tropical states and countries. More than 30 jurisdictions have answered LEAF’s call for proposals and seek to reduce their deforestation in exchange for compensation for results demonstrated at large scale.

(Washington, D.C. – August 11, 2021) A new report developed by M.J. Bradley & Associates for Environmental Defense Fund shows a large and growing opportunity to expand America’s zero-emission freight trucks and buses.

The report, titled Medium- & Heavy-Duty Vehicles: Market structure, Environmental Impact, and EV Readiness, evaluates the environmental impacts of the current fleet of freight trucks and buses and the near-term opportunities to deploy zero-emitting vehicles in the medium and heavy-duty fleet.

The report follows on the heels of President Biden signing an Executive Order with the historic goal of making half of all new passenger cars and trucks sold in 2030 zero-emitting. The President also directed EPA to develop multipollutant standards for new freight trucks and buses and to consider the role that zero-emitting vehicles could play in eliminating pollution from these vehicles.

“Deploying zero-emitting solutions in urban and community applications by 2030 and ensuring 100% of all new trucks and buses are zero-emitting by 2040 will eliminate harmful pollution from our nation’s freight trucks and buses – pollution that disproportionately burdens low income communities and communities of color,” said EDF Associate Vice President for Clean Air Strategies Peter Zalzal. “Eliminating pollution from these vehicles will help protect the climate, save truckers and fleets money, and support domestic manufacturing and American jobs.”

The U.S. medium and heavy-duty truck sector includes the almost 23 million vehicles on our roads that are used for commercial or public purposes, rather than for personal transportation – transit and school buses, freight trucks and tractor-trailers, garbage and construction trucks, delivery vans and heavy-duty pickups. Together they travel more than 430 billion miles and use 55 billion gallons of fuel each year.

While medium and heavy-duty trucks are less than 10% of all the vehicles on our roads, they are responsible for large amounts of climate pollution and other health-harming air pollution, including more than 60% of the particulate and smog-forming pollution from all U.S. vehicles. The particulate and smog-forming pollution from medium and heavy-duty vehicles are harmful air pollutants that disproportionately burden low-income communities and communities of color. Switching to zero-emitting trucks and buses would eliminate that pollution and could provide $485 billion by 2040 in health and environmental benefits.

The report evaluates four factors in assessing the readiness of zero-emitting medium and heavy-duty vehicles in different applications – the availability of electric models from manufacturers, the requirements for charging, the ability of electric models to meet operating requirements, and the business case for zero-emitting vehicles. It finds that a large number of market segments have favorable ratings across at least three of these categories, which indicates strong potential for near-term zero-emitting vehicle deployment. These market segments, which represent about 66% of the current in-use fleet, include heavy-duty pickups and vans, local delivery and service trucks and vans, transit and school buses, class 3 to 5 box trucks, class 3 to 7 stake trucks, dump trucks and garbage trucks.

Electrifying these vehicles would deliver significant public health benefits – including up to 1,500 fewer premature deaths, 1,400 fewer hospital visits, and 890,000 fewer incidents of exacerbated respiratory conditions each year.

The report also finds that there’s already significant activity in the zero-emission medium and heavy-duty market. A number of fleets have committed to zero-emitting vehicles and manufacturers have introduced prototypes and announced commercial launch dates for new models:

• Ford will soon begin taking pre-orders for an electric version of their Transit commercial van, to be introduced in Model Year 2022.
• Roush CleanTech recently announced a collaboration with electric bus maker Proterra and Penske Truck Leasing to develop a next generation all-electric commercial truck built on the Ford F-650 chassis.
• Volvo and Freightliner have both started taking commercial orders for their e-models.
• Kenworth has developed a prototype Class 6 electric truck and plans to produce up to 100 of them this year.
• Both Navistar (NEXT) and General Motors (Bright Drop) have launched new business units to focus on electric vehicles, software, and services.
• Navistar, Volvo, and Freightliner have all announced major investments to build or upgrade U.S. factories to produce zero-emitting vehicles.
• Cummins will invest more than $500 million in its Electrified Power technology. Cummins has also pledged to power all its products with carbon-neutral technologies by 2050.

Fleet owners are also showing enthusiasm for electrification. Amazon recently ordered 100,000 zero-emitting delivery vans, and thousands more have been ordered by UPS, FedEx and PepsiCo. FedEx has also pledged to make its pickup and delivery fleet all-electric by 2040.

State and local governments are also embracing zero-emission trucks. For instance, there are more than 2,000 electric buses now in use or on order in 45 different states, and the Montgomery County School System in Maryland recently ordered 326 electric school buses. Fifteen states and Washington D.C. are currently working toward an historic commitment to accelerate the sale and use of zero-emitting vehicles. All of these investments and commitments are helping to grow domestic manufacturing and create American jobs.

You can read the full report here.

“The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a welcome sign of bipartisanship on legislation to rebuild better — and a necessary step toward passing the bold jobs and clean energy plan the Senate will consider next. We are focused on ensuring that Congress is ambitious about creating jobs, cleaning up the largest sources of pollution and addressing environmental injustice.

“The bipartisan bill includes helpful policies including funding for charging stations and orphan well remediation. However, on its own, the bill is just the first step in meeting the climate challenge we face. We look forward to legislative action on bold climate and clean energy provisions, including critical clean energy tax incentives, environmental justice protections and clean electricity and transportation provisions.

“Congress needs to take on the big challenges we face. We can rebuild America, create jobs and help solve the climate crisis if we’re bold. Now is the moment to be ambitious for a better future.”

• Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund

(NEW YORK, NY) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change today released its Sixth Assessment Report, which summarizes the current state of Earth’s warming climate while looking ahead to future scenarios with and without effective climate action.

“The latest report from top international scientists – which warns that we will likely exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) of warming a decade earlier than expected – should trigger both serious concern and concerted action by policymakers around the world. The report makes clear that if we don’t move aggressively to cut the pollution heating our atmosphere, we are guaranteeing a less stable, less habitable and less prosperous world now and in the future.

“This report also provides a road map for slowing the rate of warming and protecting our communities from even more instability. For the first time, the IPCC highlights the importance of short-lived, highly potent pollutants such as methane, which alone accounts for at least 25% of the warming we are currently experiencing. The report quashes any remaining debate about the urgent need to slash methane pollution, especially from sectors such as oil and gas, where the available reductions are fastest and cheapest. When it comes to our overheating planet, every fraction of a degree matters – and there is no faster, more achievable way to slow the rate of warming than by cutting human-caused methane emissions.

“As the report makes equally clear, we need to simultaneously amp up efforts to slash carbon dioxide emissions while actively removing CO2 from the atmosphere. This is where protecting and restoring nature can deliver big gains. Natural climate solutions provided by forests, grasslands and wetlands not only draw down carbon and store it underground, but also help clean the air and water, and buffer communities from increased storms, flooding and drought. Best of all, natural climate solutions are available to deploy today and have the potential to provide a significant proportion of the climate mitigation we need between now and 2030.

“In the United States, Congress has a narrow window to take the kind of bold action necessary to meet this challenge. As it considers legislation to rebuild our infrastructure and invest in our people, it must move aggressively to clean up the largest sources of climate pollution and address environmental injustice. As the new IPCC report vividly demonstrates, this may be our last best chance to avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis.”

• Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund

WASHINGTON –  In a motion filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today, Environmental Defense Fund argued that Spire’s application for a temporary emergency certificate “has serious deficiencies” and that “any temporary emergency certificate granted by the commission should be limited and subject to strict conditions.”

In June, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit vacated the commission's approval of Spire's Certificate to Operate, finding that FERC did not sufficiently analyze whether the new pipeline was needed in the first place and ignored record evidence of self-dealing between the Spire affiliates. Following the court decision, Spire filed an emergency application to FERC seeking to continue operating the pipeline and argued that natural gas supply to customers in St. Louis would be constrained without it.

“The D.C. Circuit Court’s decision to vacate FERC’s unlawful approval of the Spire STL pipeline was firmly supported by precedent and appropriate in light of the serious deficiencies in FERC’s Orders. FERC must carefully evaluate Spire’s extraordinary request and protect ratepayers, landowners, and local communities impacted by the unlawful pipeline. Left unchecked, Spire stands to profit from a problem of its own making,”

• Natalie Karas, Senior Director and Lead Counsel, Energy Markets & Utility Regulation

Before the Spire STL pipeline was built, Spire Missouri had access to sufficient natural gas during winter peaks. However, once FERC granted the now-vacated certificate, Spire Missouri took out of service assets that supported service during winter peaks, including an interconnection with another interstate pipeline, compressor units at a gas storage field, and a propane peaking facility – all of which increased the company’s reliance on the Spire STL pipeline. This contravenes the claim that the Spire STL pipeline was built to reduce its reliance on a single asset. In its filing, EDF urged FERC to require Spire to disclose when and why the company took key infrastructure assets offline and how quickly the company could return those assets to service.

If FERC finds that an emergency certificate is warranted, EDF asked the commission to strictly limit the authorization to a specific time frame, allow usage in narrow circumstances to avoid service disruptions, require Spire to charge reduced rates to customers, and protect and compensate landowners who have been subject to eminent domain and remediation failures.

In a separate proceeding before the Missouri Public Service Commission, EDF and the Midwest Energy Consumers Group and the Consumers Council of Missouri filed a motion asking for heightened scrutiny of the affiliate transaction in light of the D.C. Circuit Court’s decision in order to protect ratepayers from unnecessary costs.

“Today, I had the huge honor of being at the White House to hear President Biden, standing together with union leaders and executives from the Big Three U.S. automakers, announce historic goals to ensure half of new cars sold in America are zero-emitting by 2030. The President also directed EPA to move forward with standards that will help to make those goals a reality, and other standards to address pollution from new freight trucks and buses relying on all available zero-emitting solutions.

“The President’s action will help catalyze additional manufacturer investments, beyond the billions of dollars already committed, and will help grow high-paying American jobs for the workers who will build these zero-emitting vehicles. It will help ensure American families and businesses that buy these vehicles save thousands of dollars in avoided fuel costs. It will put us on the path to eliminating climate pollution from cars, freight trucks and buses, which we must do to address the climate crisis and help to ensure healthy communities.

“The blueprint announced today will ensure broadly-shared benefits for all Americans. Other countries are racing to eliminate pollution from their cars and trucks. Today’s announcement helps move America toward the front of the pack. Now we must all work together to realize the vision laid out here today, and to build on it to eliminate pollution from all new passenger cars by 2035 and all new freight trucks and buses by 2040.”

- Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund

"According to news reports, President Biden, joined by leaders of the U.S. Big Three automakers, is expected to announce a vision for our nation that half of new passenger vehicles sold in America by 2030 will be zero-emitting. This is a defining moment for America – the official starting gun in the race to eliminate tailpipe pollution from cars, passenger trucks and SUVs and to make sure those zero-emission vehicles are manufactured here at home.

"The Big Three and other automakers have invested billions of dollars in developing zero-emitting vehicles – a testament to the enormous economic, job and consumer benefits that these vehicles will deliver. A strong vision from President Biden, along with these significant investments, will help ensure lots of high-paying manufacturing jobs here in America to produce zero-emitting vehicles – vehicles that will then save their owners thousands of dollars on gas.

"Transportation is also the biggest source of climate pollution in the U.S. Ensuring half of new cars sold are zero-emitting will help to reduce that pollution and secure healthier air for all.

"Countries around the world are racing to eliminate pollution from their cars and trucks. The expected announcement will signal that the U.S. will not be left behind. Now we must all work together to build on that announcement and eliminate pollution from all new passenger cars by 2035 and all new freight trucks and buses by 2040. It's a goal that's ambitious but achievable. American can win this race, and our prize will be good jobs, savings at the gas pump for American families, cleaner air and a safer climate."

- Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund

(WASHINGTON – Aug. 4, 2021) As summer heats up and Americans turn to grilling their tuna and gathering for clam bakes, a new poll released by Environmental Defense Fund reveals voters are open to consuming more home-grown seafood if it adheres to strong consumer and environmental standards for fish that’s farmed in the U.S.

According to the poll, 84% of voters support a proposal that “would first examine the risks and opportunities of fish farming (also known as aquaculture) in U.S. federal waters before setting high standards and regulation for safe and sustainable aquaculture.”

The poll comes as there has been growing interest in aquaculture in U.S. federal waters. Internationally, the near-and-offshore aquaculture industry is well-established. Americans import more than 85% of all the seafood we eat, and more than half of that is farmed. But it often comes from countries that lack strong standards for safety and sustainability.

“Americans value local seafood and want to know that the fish they eat is caught or raised safely and sustainably,” said Eric Schwaab, Senior VP for Ecosystems and Oceans. “As aquaculture is increasingly a part of our seafood choices, special efforts are needed to get aquaculture right. By developing a new national standard, the United States can lead the way in ensuring that we meet consumer demand and grow local business while also reducing the environmental footprint of food production.” 

Click here to see a memo of the results.

Nearly 70% of respondents who eat seafood are concerned about where their seafood comes from, and across the board, nearly 9 in 10 voters signal that increasing regulations, setting higher standards for seafood, making seafood more sustainable for the long term and reducing the environmental harms that can result from fish farming are priorities.

These concerns cut across the aisle, too — with 92% of Democrats, 86% of Republicans and 85% of Independents overwhelmingly agreeing on the need for stronger regulations on seafood sold in the U.S.   

Like other forms of food production, aquaculture has its risks, and voters are concerned about the health and environmental impacts of both foreign and domestic aquaculture. However, 73% of voters say they are likely to eat more seafood if it was raised or caught in the United States and 71% are likely to eat more if it came from sources that will sustainably continue to provide seafood over the long term.

“We already benefit from nearshore aquaculture for things like shellfish and seaweed. We have the opportunity to proactively set a high sustainability bar for offshore aquaculture in federal waters,” Schwaab added.

That’s why EDF announced its recent initiative to ensure that domestic aquaculture in the U.S. is done in the most environmentally sustainable way possible and prioritizes economic growth and jobs for historically disadvantaged communities: those experiencing the greatest burdens of environmental harm, economic inequality and climate change.

With the right regulatory and policy framework, both wild-capture fisheries and offshore aquaculture can be part of a healthy ocean strategy that protects marine life, puts protein on our plates that produce fewer carbon emissions than land-based proteins and delivers good jobs and economic growth to a diverse array of Americans. But there is more work to do before that becomes a reality.

That’s why EDF is:

• Researching, identifying and prioritizing key issues in offshore aquaculture that would benefit from further study, including the impacts of escapes, localized pollution concerns, environmentally responsible approaches to feed and other critical issues.
• Working with experts and policymakers to develop legislation to examine the most significant issues and help to shape a strong regulatory framework for safe, sustainable and environmentally sound aquaculture.
• Advocating for an expanding aquaculture industry that will be as inclusive as possible, connecting the opportunities and benefits to more Americans.

The poll, conducted by Benenson Strategy Group, surveyed 800 registered voters nationwide from July 9 to July 15, 2021. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3.4% at the 95% confidence interval.

(WASHINGTON, DC—August 3, 2021) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan announced his selection for members of the agency’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), including Steven Hamburg, Environmental Defense Fund’s Chief Scientist.

Dr. Hamburg will join 46 other members of the board, who will provide advice to EPA leadership as it continues to advance its mission. Dr. Hamburg also holds a dual appointment to the Climate Science Committee and previously served as a member of the Chartered SAB.

“I am looking forward to working together with this group of talented scientists as we advise the EPA on how best to protect our environment and our fellow citizens from dangerous pollution and the threat of climate change,” Hamburg said. “We are at a critical point in our fight against climate change and have no time to waste. I welcome the Biden administration’s commitment to following the science as we move forward in developing thoughtful, evidence-backed solutions.”