CONTACT:
Sarah McBride
Program Coordinator, Media and Public Engagement
smcbride@momscleanairforce.org
(617) 918-7241
WHAT: Over 50 Moms Clean Air Force staff, organizers, and members will testify at a three-day Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) virtual public hearing to offer comment on the agency’s proposed rule around new soot standards. Also known as particle pollution/PM2.5, soot is a tiny pollutant that comes from the burning of fossil fuels. The hearing is scheduled for February 21-23.
WHO: Moms from the following states will provide testimony: AZ, CO, DC, LA, MA, MD, MI, MT, NC, NM, NV, NY, OH, PA, UT, VA, VT, and WV. They will speak up about how the proposed soot standards fall short of the protections for which Moms Clean Air Force has long advocated–and fall short of protecting our children and communities from avoidable health harms. Moms Clean Air Force is calling on EPA to set a more health protective standard for soot of 8 micrograms per cubic meter for the annual standard and 25 micrograms per cubic meter for the daily standard, as recommended by leading medical groups. More details are found in our statement here. A number of these testimonies will focus on what it means to be an impacted family living in areas with high particle pollution levels.
The following speakers will be available for interview:
- Elizabeth Bechard, Senior Policy Analyst, can speak to national and state press about why more must be done to further strengthen the annual standard and strengthen the 24-hour standard to protect public health and advance environmental justice. This rulemaking comes at a time when 63 million people in the US experience unhealthy spikes in daily soot levels, and are at continued risk from breathing dirty air unless the 24-hour standard is updated. Across the country, communities of color are disproportionately impacted by soot pollution.
- Roishetta Ozane, one of our Louisana Field Organizers and a noted environmental justice advocate living in the Lake Charles area, is no stranger to the dangers of air pollution. Roishetta and her six children–two of whom live with asthma– live near petrochemical plants that routinely flare in a state that is a hub for petrochemical and petroleum manufacturing. In her testimony, Roishetta will be urging the EPA to do all it can to protect frontline communities like hers by finalizing a strong soot pollution rule that makes the air safer to breathe.
WHEN: The hearing will take place Tuesday, February 21- Thursday, February 23. Speakers available for interview are scheduled to testify in the following order during the indicated windows:
- Elizabeth Bechard: Tuesday, February 21, 5:00-7:00 PM ET
- Roishetta Ozane: Wednesday, February 22, 1:00-3:00 PM ET
WHERE: EPA will hear testimony over Zoom and the hearing will be livestreamed. Links for the livestreams can be found on the EPA website. We may be able to provide the media with a recording of each of the above mentioned testimonies upon request.
ADDITIONAL INFO: EPA will accept public comment for 60 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register. The Moms Clean Air Force petition/comment submission form is found here.
RESOURCES:
- Statement: New Particle Pollution Standards from EPA are an Important Step–but Should be Strengthened
- Fact Sheet: Particle Pollution & Your Health
- Q&A: Soot & the Short-Term Standard
- Letter: Letter to EPA about National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Fine Particulate Matter
- Petition: Tell EPA: Protect Our Children From Harmful Soot Pollution