Today, Mothers & Others’ Dr. Anne spoke at a hearing about an EPA proposal to strengthen greenhouse gas emissions. Stronger standards would also lead to improved health, especially for people who live near interstates and highways.
You can read what Dr. Anne said in the 3 minutes she had to speak:
I’m speaking on behalf of Mothers & Others For Clean Air. I’m a pediatrician and I live in Atlanta, Georgia. Our city has 3 interstates that intersect here, and intermodal hubs with shipping containers from the ports on the coast. We are a trucking hub, with multiple warehouses and tens of thousands of truck trips around the area each day. We have also experienced climate change, including major hurricanes such as Michael and Irma, that were enhanced by climate change. We are also experiencing a longer ozone season due to climate change, which means more hot sunny days in spring and fall. People who are children now will bear the brunt of climate change throughout their whole lives.
Because our interstates and distribution centers were planned during the 1950s and 1960s when redlining was legal, the highways and warehouses are very often located in communities of color. Therefore, truck emissions create disproportionate exposure, and contribute disproportionately to health disparities.
Heavy duty trucks are less than 10% of vehicles on the road, but make a major amount of the traffic-related nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate pollution. NO2 is both a greenhouse gas and a health-damaging air pollutant. Recent studies have shown that NO2 causes 1.6% of all deaths in the U.S. (Meng et al, BMJ). In addition to deaths, NO2 damages children’s lung growth (Gauderman et al, NEJM), causes asthma attacks in children and adults, and is implicated in children developing asthma. In older adults, NO2 increases incidence of pneumonia, cardiovascular disease, ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and cancer (Eum et al, Env. International). Recent studies have also linked long term exposure to increased incidence and increased mortality from Covid.
Particulate matter from heavy duty vehicles is also exceedingly bad for health in children and adults, from prenatal exposure through retirement years. I don’t have time in 3 minutes to detail all the health problems, but they are numerous and often severe, even deadly.
This proposal addresses greenhouse gases, but the health co-benefits make the benefits far outweigh the costs. Addressing climate change is critical to protect human health, and by also reducing air pollution, these standards will improve health and save lives.
I urge EPA to finalize the most protective standards by the end of this year, because our lives and the lives of vulnerable children, seniors, and communities of color depend on it.
5-3-2023
