By: Giovanna Rossi, New Mexico Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: February 12, 2024
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0434
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Thank you for the opportunity to provide public comment.
My name is Giovanna Rossi, and I am a field organizer for Moms Clean Air Force in New Mexico. Warmer temperatures caused by climate change make air pollution worse, putting the health of New Mexico’s children at risk. Quickly and significantly reducing methane pollution is one of the best levers we have to slow the rate of climate change now and help clean up the air to protect children’s health. New Mexico Moms support the Methane Emissions Reduction Program and the need to cut methane and other harmful pollutants from oil and gas operations across the country. By ensuring oil and gas operators comply with federal methane standards and take action now to reduce emissions, this program is an important step towards addressing the climate crisis and protecting the health and safety of children and families across the country.
Climate change is already impacting our families and communities in New Mexico. We’re seeing firsthand the effects of climate instability on our most vulnerable populations — children, older adults, pregnant women, those whose health is compromised, communities of color and low-income communities. I saw this up close and personal in the summer of 2021 when a good friend who lives on her family farm in Las Vegas, NM began collecting and delivering supplies to surrounding families. She and her neighbors had been evacuated because of the Hermit’s Peak wildfires, but unable to move all their animals, their cows and horses remained dangerously close to the burning forest. We organized quickly and started collecting food and other supplies they needed. I’ll never forget the look of desperation in her eyes, with her young son in the back seat of the car, as we piled canned food, diapers and boxes of cereal into the back of her car. We were in a hurry because she still needed to drive the 90 miles back to her community to deliver the supplies and then go check on her elderly mom and dad and their farm animals. Their lives and their livelihood were at stake.
Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon story. Methane pollution from the oil and gas industry is fueling the climate crisis, and endangering the health and safety of communities across the country. Millions of people across the U.S. and around the world are experiencing strange and severe weather and severe health impacts as temperatures continue to rise. Cutting methane pollution will help reduce the impacts of climate change and can also improve air quality and public health.
Scientists have known for decades that air pollution is harmful to health and this is especially true for vulnerable populations such as older adults, people with underlying health conditions, communities of color, pregnant women, and children. According to our own New Mexico Department of Health, asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in our state, with an estimated 136,000 (8.4%) adults and 26,000 (5.4%) children currently having the disease. And we know that people with asthma are more likely to miss school or work, report feelings of depression, and experience an overall reduced quality of life. Cutting methane would reduce the air pollution that can lead to asthma attacks and curb the other health impacts of climate change. This is a win for public health.
Slowing today’s unprecedented rate of warming can help avert our most acute climate risks, making it critical that the Biden administration implements solutions to cut methane pollution. Today I am urging EPA to swiftly enforce this commonsense fee that will hold the nation’s largest oil and gas polluters accountable for excessive climate pollution. Protecting public health means keeping everyone's air clean and safe to breathe, and cutting methane pollution from the oil and gas industry is essential to this effort.
Thank you.