By: Karin Stein, Iowa State Coordinator, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: May 9, 2023
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2022-0829
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Hello, my name is Karin Stein. I am the Iowa Coordinator for Moms Clean Air Force and its EcoMadres program. We fight for clean air, climate safety, and climate justice. I am here today to express my support for the strongest clean car standards possible.
I am a professional, touring musician, and before the pandemic, over the first 22 years of my career, I drove and flew tens of thousands of miles every year for work. I traveled with a constant sense of guilt, especially since learning that transportation is the major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, which is one of two countries that stand out as infamous leaders for greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
I am South American. I was born and raised in Colombia and later spent my teenage years in Costa Rica before coming to the United States on a student visa and raising a family here. Everywhere I have lived, I have lived in rural areas, which has allowed me to observe the changing cycles of nature up close. I am 61 years old, which gives me some perspective on how climate change is playing out. What I see wherever I look is not good, especially not for those who have limited resources to begin with.
My family and friends abroad, my home in Iowa—all the places I know best—have all been affected by climate events with long-term consequences.
Just today, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds declared a disaster emergency proclamation for my county, among others, after we were hit yet again by one of the severe storms that have been increasing in frequency, this time a bad hailstorm. We are still recovering from the derecho storm that hit us three years ago and caused enormous damage in this very area.
For a few years, I have been speaking at performing arts conferences about the terrible carbon footprint our industry leaves, an industry which, at the same time, is all about improving the world through art, activism, and speaking up for causes that improve human lives through arts engagement.
Even though it was devastating to have my musical touring career take a bad hit from the pandemic, I felt relief that I wasn’t contributing nearly as much to greenhouse gas emissions for three years. As I look forward to increasing my musical activities again, however, I relive that old guilt about increasing my carbon footprint. Traveling professionals of all kinds need to have access to affordable, zero emission vehicles, and I believe strong, clean car standards will move us in that direction.
Please finalize the strongest possible standards for Light and Medium Duty Vehicles this year, because it will improve our chances at climate safety—for the sake of my daughters and those who follow.
I have been hearing about climate change from the scientific community since my childhood, and I can’t believe we’re still in a tug-of-war about faster progress. You, EPA, can make it happen.
Thank you.