While COVID-19 spreads across the United States, EPA Chief Wheeler and President Trump push a radical pro-polluter agenda.
January 21
U.S. confirms first case of COVID-19.
January 30
World Health Organization declares Global Health Emergency.
February 29
Washington state reports the first COVID-19 related death in U.S.
March 13
President Trump declares a national emergency.
March 17
U.S. Covid-19 deaths reach 100.
March 18
Wheeler publishes the Censored Science Supplemental Proposal, expanding his dangerous effort to restrict the agency’s use of science when setting public health protections. This would allow EPA to cast aside many widely accepted studies that demonstrate the harm of toxic chemicals and pollution as well as vital coronavirus research.
March 26
U.S. leads the world in number of confirmed COVID-19 cases.
March 26
Days after the American Petroleum Institute asked Wheeler to relax requirements, EPA claims “enforcement discretion” to allow polluters to violate certain environmental and health protections during the pandemic.
March 27
U.S. becomes the first country to exceed 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases.
March 31
Wheeler finalizes Clean Cars Rollback, subjecting Americans to an estimated 18,500 more premature deaths; 250,000 athma attacks; 350,000 respiratory ailments by 2050; and 1.5 billion tons of climate pollution and $244 billion more in fuel costs by 2040.
April 5
Harvard releases new research showing the possible link between air pollution and higher death rates from COVID-19.
April 11
U.S. COVID-19 deaths reach 20,000, the highest of any country in the world.
April 14
Wheeler proposes not to strengthen standards for particulate matter, which is responsible for an estimated 85,000 deaths in the U.S. every year.
April 16
Wheeler announces final action undermining the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards — safeguards implemented and in effect today that prevent up to 11,000 premature deaths and 130,000 asthma attacks among children each year.
April 29
U.S. COVID-19 deaths have risen to 60,407, with over 1,000,000 documented cases in the country.
May 19
President Trump formalizes Wheeler’s “enforcement discretion” policy with an executive order instructing government agencies to rescind, modify, waive, or provide exemptions from regulations that may “inhibit economic recovery.”
May 27
The United States surpasses 100,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19.
June 2
EPA asks for expedited review of its proposal to eliminate regulation of methane pollution from oil and gas operations.
June 4
President Trump signs an executive order allowing agencies to waive application of environmental laws—including the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Clean Water Act—to expedite federal approvals of infrastructure such as pipelines and highways.
July 13
Wheeler proposes to retain the current standards for ground level ozone, or smog, ignoring the evidence that the standards are too weak to adequately protect people from asthma attacks and other health harms.
July 23
The United States surpasses 4 million confirmed cases of COVID-19.
August 13
EPA finalizes its rule to eliminate regulation of methane pollution from oil and gas operations. This major rollback will allow the oil and gas industry to release millions of tons of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and other harmful pollutants, such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) - making the climate crisis worse and threatening the health of families living near oil and gas operations.
September 22
The death toll from COVID-19 in the US surpasses 200,000.
September 25
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the US surpass 7 million.
Updated: 10/07/20
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