By: Lorna Perez, Florida Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: July 10, 2025
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0794-6978
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Hello. My name is Lorna Perez, and I’m the Florida Field Organizer for Moms Clean Air Force. We represent over 186,000 moms, dads, and caregivers across Florida who are united in the fight against air pollution. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.
I’m here today to express my strong opposition to EPA’s proposal to repeal recent updates to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards.
In the U.S., the biggest source of mercury pollution is coal-fired power plants. We understand the health implications linked to this pollution, but what’s often overlooked in conversations is who bears the greatest burden. In cities like Miami, Orlando, and Immokalee, Latiné and immigrant families are more likely to live near polluting power plants, depend on subsistence or cultural fishing, and lack access to timely public health information. Many families rely on locally caught fish as a primary food source, often unaware of mercury contamination because health advisories are not available in their language or are not reaching their communities.
I speak as a proud member of Florida’s Latiné community and as someone who has seen firsthand how pollution impacts immigrant families like mine. Here in Tampa Bay, we’re surrounded by beautiful water and rich ecosystems, but many of the fish families catch and eat, especially in Latiné and immigrant households, may contain mercury levels high enough to harm unborn children. Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin, and even small exposures during pregnancy can cause permanent damage to a developing child’s brain. Studies in Florida show that women of childbearing age, like me—especially those who consume locally caught fish—often have mercury levels that exceed safety thresholds.
In immigrant communities, the risks are compounded by language barriers and limited access to healthcare. People simply don’t know the dangers or how to protect themselves. I am fortunate to be fluent in English, but I’ve being translating for my family, friends, and neighbors whose first language is Spanish ever since I was a little girl. That responsibility often falls on the younger generation to interpret complex health information for their parents and elders.
At a time when immigrant communities are already facing heightened persecution and systemic barriers, it is unjust to add yet another burden. It should be a shared, communal responsibility to ensure that everyone has equal access to health information and toxin-free food.
We know the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards have saved lives since they were first adopted, and that the version of the rule that was strengthened last year will have significant benefits for public health, including reducing children’s exposure to hazardous heavy metals, particle pollution, and ozone.
I urge EPA to protect the recent updates to MATS in order to protect children, especially in Latiné and immigrant communities, and ensure every family in Florida has the right to breathe clean air and raise healthy children without fear of invisible toxics in our air, water, and food.
Thank you.
[1]: https://environmentamerica.org/florida/media-center/new-data-shows-florida-power-plants-emit-15th-most-mercury-pollution-nationally/?utm_source=chatgpt.com "New Data Shows Florida Power Plants Emit 15th Most Mercury Pollution Nationally"
[2]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23397644/?utm_source=chatgpt.com "Fish consumption patterns and mercury exposure levels among women of childbearing age in Duval County, Florida"
[3]: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18814872/?utm_source=chatgpt.com "Mercury levels and fish consumption practices in women of child-bearing age in the Florida Panhandle - PubMed"
[4]: https://quality.healthfinder.fl.gov/health-encyclopedia/HIE/1/007763?utm_source=chatgpt.com "FloridaHealthFinder | Methylmercury poisoning | Health Encyclopedia | FloridaHealthFinder"
[5]: https://www.floridahealth.gov/%5C/programs-and-services/prevention/healthy-weight/nutrition/seafood-consumption/quick-facts.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com "Quick Facts | Florida Department of Health"