New rules limiting clean water protections ignore stream science

Sections of the Little Colorado River in northern Arizona are ephemeral, flowing most frequently during the spring to accommodate snowmelt runoff or during the summer monsoon season. In this view, the river is at flood stage, with water cascading over the falls. Dale Nations/Flickr CC What happens to part of a river network affects all of … Read more

Turning EPA into a “Regulatory Capture” Agency

EPA employees holding signs "no budget or staffing cuts"

We are reposting a thoughtful – and alarming – article by a group of academics about the ways in which Scott Pruitt is mounting “an ongoing, broad-scale takeover of [EPA] by industries it regulates”  published today on The Environmental Protection Agency made news recently for excluding reporters from a “summit” meeting on chemical contamination in drinking water. … Read more

Save EPA – A new ‘toon is up in the adventures of Slick Scotty

And now a word from Slick Scotty’s sponsors…We welcome volunteers! Thank you for your interest in Save EPA.  As you’ve seen, we create tools & talking points to help you speak out in defense of our environmental protections.  The Trump Administration continues to launch a massive assault on our climate, our public health and our … Read more

State of Risk: How Weakening EPA Imperils Our Health, Families, Jobs & Economy

EPA was created to protect our air, water, lands –  and, above all, our health.  Since its creation in 1970, EPA has made our air and water cleaner, prevented millions of asthma attacks and hospitalizations, and avoided hundreds of thousands of premature deaths, all while America enjoyed a growing economy and expanding population.  Protecting the … Read more

Western Wildfires and Climate Change

Smoke billowing across the ocean from Mendocino to San Francisco

We’re watching those out-of-control wildfires raging in California with horror, sorrow and a lot of empathy. Our hearts go out of the thousands of people watching their homes go up in flames.  This drone footage posted by the Washington Post yesterday conveys the total devastation that wildfires can bring.    Sadly, Western US wildfires have … Read more

Our best climate program is under attack

Rows of vehicles in traffic spewing emissions.

“Clean car standards are one of the quickest, most effective and easiest ways to help us get on the right track to carbon-free transportation and a safer, healthier climate.” By Garrett Garner-Wells, Paul Guzyk and Luke Walch Boulder Daily Camera  10/03/2017 What if we told you there’s a five-year-old who is on the front lines … Read more

Boulder’s Climate Researchers Wary Of White House Budget, Paris Accord Exit

The alpine Niwot Ridge research site, about 21 miles west of Boulder, is one of about 100 NOAA sites around the globe that tracks carbon dioxide levels. The Colorado data is one of the longest sets, stretching back 50 years. Grace Hood/CPR News For decades, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has depended on a … Read more

Talking Colorado Climate Change: Rising Temps, Shorter Ski Seasons And Possibly More Air Turbulence

How often have you cringed when you heard an airline pilot or flight attendant come on the P.A. system to inform you that there was turbulence in the air? Turns out those announcements may become more commonplace, because of climate change. A study from England’s University of Reading finds turbulence could get two or three times worse if carbon dioxide … Read more

How Will The U.S. Climate Change Withdrawal Impact Colorado?

The United States may be backing out of the Paris climate accord, but at least nine mayors in Colorado have pledged to uphold the deal. Collectively, the mayors from these cities — Denver, Aspen, Boulder, Breckenridge, Edgewater, Lafayette, Lakewood, Longmont and Vail — represent more than a million people in the state. But what does it mean for a city … Read more

Save EPA has been an all-volunteer group of former EPA officials who became alarmed about the Trump agenda for EPA and joined together to fight it.

With newly-elected President-Elect Biden and VP-Elect Harris coming in January, the need to "save EPA" is much less urgent. This is not to imply all clear skies ahead - there is much re-building to do, there will be negative pressures on the new administration, and we will likely have policy differences in the future. However, we are hopeful that these differences will be discussed rationally, using science as a basis for moving forward, and keeping EPA's mission of protecting human health and the environment in the forefront.

And so, we are going back to retirement!  We're keeping our website up at http://saveepaalums.info/ , as a resource for those who want to follow and influence the restoration work. Our report on the Trump record at EPA describes the actions that need to be reversed [saveepaalums.info/Trump+era+report], and our guide to participating in the rulemaking process [http://saveepaalums.info/Resistance+Guide] can help you be part of the solution.

Thank you for your support and commitment during the past 3.5 years.  While the Trump assaults were unending, they were also frequently unsuccessful, and that was due in large part to public outrage.  Keep it up!  Although EPA will be in much better hands with a Biden administration, there is always a need for an informed and engaged public.

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