By: Rachel Meyer, Ohio River Valley State Coordinator, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: May 9, 2023
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0794
To: Environmental Protection Agency
My name is Rachel Meyer, and I am the Ohio River Valley Field Coordinator for Moms Clean Air Force. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. I live in Independence Township in Pennsylvania. I strongly support EPA’s proposal to strengthen the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards which will protect children from negative developmental impacts associated with mercury, and other heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, and chromium. I ask that the EPA finalize these standards as quickly as possible.
Mercury from coal-fired power plants is released into the air, falls into waterways, and accumulates in fish that families eat. Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that can cause permanent damage to the brains of babies and fetuses, leading to developmental delays, learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and birth defects. As an elementary school teacher for many years, I am deeply committed to children’s learning and dream of the day when mercury exposure due to burning coal in power plants will no longer factor into a child's cognitive development. This is why I am testifying today.
On a personal note, while pregnant, I scrutinized everything that I ate. I felt the enormous responsibility of how my actions would affect my child’s future. I wished that I could freely eat fish for the key nutrients it provides for brain development, but due to mercury pollution, I knew I had to carefully monitor the type and amount of fish that I ate. It all still felt risky and stressful, and as a 42-year-old mother-to-be, I certainly wanted to eliminate any risk I could. It’s time for stronger mercury safeguards in order to protect the health of families across the country, especially those communities that rely on fish for a primary food source. We know that mercury protections can have significant public health benefits for young children.
In addition to lowering mercury and providing critical benefits for children’s development, EPA’s proposal to strengthen Mercury and Air Toxics Standards will increase protections from other toxic heavy metals including lead, arsenic, and chromium which are known to increase significant health impacts, including fatal heart attacks, cancer, and developmental delays in children. Health-harming air pollutants, including fine particle pollution (also known as soot), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and carbon dioxide will also be reduced.
We must keep mercury and other toxics from spewing out of coal-fired power plants and ending up in our air, water, soil, and food. Please finalize the strongest Mercury and Air Toxic Standards as soon as possible—our children’s health must be protected. Thank you.