In the first Trump administration, the EPA appointed a Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee that skimped on expertise and subsequently failed to set science-based air pollution standards. They've just appointed a similar cast of characters. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...

8/ It's yet another example of how dismantling EPA’s independent research paves the way for deregulation that harms our health. EPA has rolled back limits for PFAS in drinking water at the same time they're cancelling millions of dollars in grants for research on the health effects of PFAS exposure.

Thanks to @fastlerner.bsky.social for this important reporting

6/ Without IRIS, it’s not clear which office will complete these assessments. It also deprives state and fed agencies of info needed for PFAS safeguards and removes a critical mechanism for automatic expansion of TRI reporting of PFAS chemicals, limiting public access to info about PFAS pollution.

5/ IRIS completed the toxicity assessment for PFHxS – the PFAS chemicals in question – in January 2025, just before President Trump took office.

4/ This matters because IRIS – the program that conducted toxicity assessments for EPA – no longer exists. It was one of the many programs eliminated when the Trump admin gutted EPA’s Office of Research and Development.

3/ Reporting PFAS chemicals to the TRI is mandated under the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act. Under the law, PFAS chemicals are automatically added to the TRI when EPA’s Integrated Risk Information System program (IRIS), conducts toxicity assessments for PFAS.

2/ In 2022, UCS joined @earthjustice.org and other organizations to sue EPA for creating loopholes for PFAS reporting in the TRI. And we won.

1/ Last month, EPA announced it would expand reporting of one type of PFAS chemical in the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI), a public database of industry-reported chemical releases.

The comment period is open. www.federalregister.gov/documents/20...

RMP facilities could also be let off the hook for having to conduct third-party safety audits after reporting a single accident. That's not "common sense" -it's an irrational concession to industry at the expense of public health.

EPA proposed eliminating explicit requirements for RMP facilities to plan for extreme weather. Our analysis shows that facilities like ExxonMobil Baytown are failing to consider hurricane risks now. It could face 9 ft floods in a Cat 4 or 5 hurricane a/t NOAA. .

EPA proposed eliminating requirements for nearly all RMP facilities to evaluate and implement safer alternatives in their existing processes - no matter how many disasters they've had.

More than 100 facilities regulated by the Risk Management Program have had more than one chemical incident in just the last five years. experience.arcgis.com/experience/8...

A new analysis and interactive map illustrates the real-world impacts of gutting regulations for the nation’s most hazardous chemical facilities, as recently proposed by the Trump Administration's EPA. With @tejasbarrios.bsky.social arcg.is/0Tirv12

“Dismantling these hard-won protections puts workers, first responders, and millions of people living at the fenceline of hazardous chemical plants in danger." Statement by UCS's @dminovi.bsky.social:

See @ucs.org statement on EPA's proposed rollback of chemical disaster prevention requirements under the Risk Management Program. EPA's continued ping-ponging of this rule does nothing but leave workers and communities at risk of catastrophic harm from chemical disasters. Enough is enough.

NEW: Trump and Republicans in Congress are rigging the rules to reward big donors. A new CSS memo documents the vectors of these attacks, which harm the public to benefit wealthy donors and corporate interests aligned with MAGA and the GOP. sensiblesafeguards.org/press/trump-...

Last month, Trump’s EPA announced that it would re-evaluate its scientific review of fluoride in drinking water and potentially update federal drinking water standards. UCS’s @dminovi.bsky.social analyzes some of the moves by the agency that are threatening people’s health.

New blog for @ucs.org on EPA's recent effort to conduct a human health assessment of exposure to fluoride in drinking water. blog.ucs.org/dminovi/is-f...

February 4th was National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Research across scientific disciplines suggests that participation in sports enhances physical, social, and emotional health. Everyone deserves that opportunity. ➡️ www.womenssportsfoundation.org/get-involved...

A big win today: a federal court found that the Trump administration’s sham report attacking climate science was created in secret by a hand-picked set of climate policy opponents, violating the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Read our statement here:

UCS’s @dminovi.bsky.social new blog describes how, under the Trump administration, the public is increasingly being cut out of decisions that affect their health, communities, and livelihoods—and how this troubling trend is also playing out at the state level.

The Trump admin "has been forced to acknowledge its unlawful actions and release gov. documents related to this case, which will allow the public to see for itself how the DOE and EPA worked in concert to solicit a report with predetermined conclusions aimed at overturning the Endangerment Finding."

New blog for @ucs.org on state laws to ban community science, especially air monitoring, in government decisionmaking. I also delve into the newly reintroduced federal Public Health Air Quality Act from @bluntrochester.senate.gov and @duckworth.senate.gov.

read @dminovi.bsky.social for more: blog.ucs.org/dminovi/how-...

The authoritarian, violent, and anti-science actions of the Trump admin over the past week show clear contempt for democracy and the public good, endangering people in the US and around the world. Congress must uphold its constitutional responsibility and hold the administration accountable.

To counter the Trump administration's ongoing assault on science and public health, we need courageous scientists to follow the lead of groups like @ameracadpeds.bsky.social and @cidrap.bsky.social and ensure that the best available science remains accessible to the public.

RFK Jr. must go. Our nation needs a qualified scientist to lead the agency entrusted to keep us all safe and healthy, not an anti-science, misinformation-peddling conspiracy theorist.

We’ve said it since the beginning: RFK Jr. is unfit to lead the federal agencies responsible for protecting our health.

It is unacceptable that more infants and young children will almost certainly suffer from life-threatening and preventable disease as the consequences of this dangerous decision unfold over the coming months and years.

Even Senator Bill Cassidy, a doctor who cast the deciding vote to confirm RFK Jr., says that the decision was “based on no scientific input.”

When science is sidelined, children get hurt. In his latest anti-science move, RFK Jr. ignored overwhelming scientific evidence, bypassed the established review process for vaccine recommendations, and all but guaranteed that more children will get sick.

Parents everywhere want to do everything possible to protect their kids and help them thrive. Secretary Kennedy just robbed us of one of the easiest ways to keep our kids safe, through routine science-based vaccine schedules. I'm angry about the kids that will suffer because of this cruel decision.

TSCA requires EPA to determine if existing or new chemicals should be regulated (banned or limited) or if they pose no unreasonable risk to the public.

The US House Committee on Science, Space and Technology will hear from only chemical industry representatives this Thursday about the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA), the primary federal law safeguarding the public from exposures to toxic chemicals.

Divorced from reality: Trump and his appointees are gutting the very scientific institutions needed to support the Genesis Mission—a planned AI-driven federal research platform stacked with potential risks. UCS analyst @jbd-phd.bsky.social weighs in:

This year, Jetelina found herself collaborating with some unlikely partners on public health projects. Follow her @kkjetelina.bsky.social and explore the full 2025 #ScienceDefenders lineup here:

It has not been an easy year for science, but there are bright spots worth celebrating. We are honoring our 2025 #ScienceDefenders, inspiring people using science to help communities and protect it from political or other interference. Meet Katelyn Jetelina, founder of Your Local Epidemiologist.

"It is impossible for science to thrive in an environment that silences experts or manipulates findings to fit political agendas, which is why the Scientific Integrity Act, reintroduced this year in Congress, is needed now more than ever before." -Joseph Reed, @ucs.org blog.ucs.org/joseph-reed/...

This past week, we released a map detailing the Trump admin's legally dubious Clean Air Act exemptions for coal plants, chemical manufacturers & other facilities emitting toxic air pollutants. These exemptions will harm overburdened communities across the US. Here's how this interactive tool works:

Applications are still open! The Science for Public Good Fund offers up to $1500 to support community-driven science advocacy projects. From workshops to local campaigns, you can help spark change. Apply here now: act.ucsusa.org/3KVR9Qo

Join me and @ucs.org at the @agu.org Annual Meeting next week. I'll be presenting Wednesday along with @carlonimbus.bsky.social and others. You can see our scientific sessions listed here and visit us at booth # 684. See you then! #AGU25 www.ucs.org/science-netw...

As a devoted @ylepidemiologist.bsky.social reader, I'm thrilled @ucs.org named Katelyn Jetelina as one of our 2025 Science Defenders, alongside @marc-alessi.bsky.social and two other incredible climate and environmental justice advocates. www.ucs.org/resources/20...

Yesterday @ucs.org released a new interactive map I co-authored detailing the Trump admin's legally dubious Clean Air Act exemptions for coal plants, chemical manufacturers, and other facilities emitting toxic air pollutants. These exemptions will harm overburdened communities across the nation.

the Trump administration is literally telling companies that emit toxic chemicals that they don’t have to abide by the Clean Air Act. Read more from @dminovi.bsky.social here: blog.ucs.org/dminovi/how-...

Demand that your members of Congress ensure the EPA complies with the Clean Air Act and implements science-based rules to protect communities.

UCS analyst Darya Minovi explains how the map works and breaks down President Trump’s #DirtyDeeds: Using legally dubious exemptions to give hazardous polluters a two-year free pass from their Clean Air Act responsibilities.

Check out the map—you can zoom in and out to see where facilities and clusters are located and click on the circles to learn more about each facility and the surrounding communities. 🗺️ 👉 act.ucsusa.org/DirtyDeedsMap

The Trump administration has given free rein to some of the most polluting industries in the country. We created an interactive map showing 546 industrial sites across the US and Puerto Rico deemed eligible for exemptions from their Clean Air Act requirements. #DirtyDeeds (🧵)