The Biden administration is escalating its environmental policies from needlessly strict to totally nonsensical, according to new air quality rules released Wednesday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The Biden EPA tightened standards for air pollution known as particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5), an umbrella term for many substances that can travel through the air as microscopic particles. Biden's bureaucrats claim it will benefit human health and communities from dangerous pollution. But their preoccupation with PM2.5 shows their priority is not the environment but a political crusade against fossil fuels. Biden's fundamental misunderstanding of America's global environmental leadership is unfortunate for the American people—and for the world.
When I mention that the United States is a world leader in clean air, audiences ranging from high school science classes to senior members of Congress usually give the same response: "pfft." Unfortunately, it's one of the best-kept secrets in political spheres.
The truth is that America has cut its air pollution by almost 80 percent over the past 50 years—even as our economy, population, and energy consumption skyrocketed. Our cities are no longer shrouded by smog and toxic fumes. In fact, our air is so clean it's nearly indistinguishable from naturally occurring levels of PM2.5. Of developed countries, only Canada and Australia, whose populations and economies are a mere fraction of ours, can match our air quality.
If the COVID-19 pandemic brought us anything good, it was proof of our environmental success. During the shutdowns, which eliminated 40 percent or more of vehicle traffic from our roads and paused significant industrial activity, air quality didn't improve. In some cities, particulate matter levels actually went up, showing that dust and pollen have a far greater effect on America's air quality than human activity, including the industrial manufacturing and energy production targeted by the EPA. This is not the case in other countries, like India and China, where toxic smog so thick that one can taste it popularized mask-wearing long before the pandemic.
Ironically, the EPA's overreach will make global air quality worse. American manufacturers will now be unable to get new permits to expand or build new facilities due to onerously tight PM2.5 regulations. Instead, our goods and services will be imported from overseas, where manufacturers produce much higher emissions and, incidentally, labor standards are appallingly lax.
As I've said many times, including before Congress, "of all the technology the Chinese steal from us, it would be nice if they would utilize our pollution control technology."
Even Democrats, like Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, asked the EPA not to change its standards, citing economic concerns. With continued inflation causing hard financial times for many American families, now is not the time to kill American jobs with overregulation or increase our trade dependence on unstable, authoritarian nations that don't share our values.
A far better option to strengthen America's environment and economy would be to reverse the ill-advised energy policies of the Biden administration and those still lingering from the Obama administration.
Many of us don't realize the massive role energy plays in our economy—it impacts every part of our day-to-day lives. In a country where lights and heat almost never fail and smartphones charge within minutes, we forget just how critical fossil fuel energy is to our physical and national security. We can't eat, wear, buy, sell, or learn anything without energy—and any policy that weakens our access to energy threatens not only our individual quality of life, but also our nation's role in the global balance of power.
Allowing responsible American businesses to thrive means we can make more of the products we need right here at home—lowering our cost of living, creating good-paying jobs, and freeing the United States from dependence on unstable nations.
Jason Isaac is the Founder and CEO of the American Energy Institute. He previously served four terms in the Texas House of Representatives.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
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