By: Shaina Oliver, Colorado Field Organizer
Date: April 6, 2026
About: Docket #EPA-HQ-OAR-2025-0068-0001
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Thank you for taking my public comments. I’m Shaina Oliver, Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Advocate, Field Organizer for Moms Clean Air Force Colorado and EcoMadres outreach coordinator. A national organization of 1.6 million parents united for our children’s health against harmful air pollution and climate change pollution with over 44,000 Colorado members. Moms Clean Air Force urges your leadership to protect our communities and strongly opposes the EPA’s proposal to remove pyrolysis incineration from the Other Solid Waste Incinerators (OSWI) Rule.
Importantly, I am speaking as an American Indian/Native American parent of four children, enrolled members of the Navajo Nation currently residing and working on the unceded treaty lands of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Nations now known as the Denver Metropolitan.
Historically, policy violations have ravaged Indigenous community’s health, wealth, and environmental wellbeing. As a tribal affiliate of the Navajo Nation, I have seen the devastating land and health impacts contributed by westward movement of settlers and a false narrative of manifest destiny that lead to coal, uranium, oil, and gas extraction; with detrimental developments that have destroyed sacred sites and contaminated lands, water, and air. Because of these disparities, Indigenous people now have the highest rates in asthma, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, leukemia, adverse birth outcomes, and premature deaths than the general population. I myself was born prematurely, low-birth weight, diagnosed with asthma as an infant, and later in life diagnosed with a birth defect.
Because of systemic environmental violence and racism built into our treaties, laws, policies, and regulations; Black, Brown, Indigenous, and low-income people have been segregated and redlined into communities near polluting industries.
Growing up I saw rural and tribal communities being developed without proper designs for waste management. It wasn’t until the early 2000’s that Tribal communities were informed to stop burning trash and ordered to carry their own trash to a designated managed trash station with a fee. This new system has increased illegal trash dumping on rural and tribal communities, where in the more developed cities trash pickup systems have been established. Even with the updates we still have not managed to know what to do with plastics and other toxic materials that end up in our landfills and illegal dumping's.
Communities like mine that are disproportionately impacted by solid waste incineration are burdened by toxic air pollutants including “dioxins, benzene, formaldehyde, particulate matter, and heavy metals, such as mercury and arsenic. Exposure to this pollution increases the risk of cancer, birth defects, reproductive system damage, developmental issues, cardiovascular problems, respiratory impairment, hormonal irregularities, and neurological problems,” Chemical Recycling" 101 - Moms Clean Air Force. Colorado already has unhealthy air pollution levels, continuously failing EPA’s Clean Air Act standards for ozone and failing to protect our children from air pollution and other environmental harms.
Pyrolysis facilities blanket communities with heavy concentrations of hazardous air pollution from burning plastics and other solid wastes while releasing climate-heating gases. In addition, many of these facilities are in communities of color and low-income neighborhoods that are already overburdened by air pollution--making this an important environmental health issue.
All waste incinerators including plastic waste pyrolysis incinerators are extremely harmful to our environment and to our children’s health. We urge you to oppose the removal of the pyrolysis incineration from the Other Solid Waste Incinerators (OSWI) Rule. Safeguard our children’s right to clean air and environmental health protections.