Michigan
Michigan experts warn of worsened air quality after Trump climate move
Washington — Experts warn air quality will worsen because of the Trump administration’s repeal of the legal basis for federal climate rules, despite a top federal regulator saying the move “does not change regulations on traditional air pollutants and air toxics.”
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin made that statement Thursday in the Oval Office as he and President Donald Trump touted the major deregulatory action. They both suggested the change would boost the U.S. auto industry.
“This EPA is committed to providing clean air for all Americans,” Zeldin said. “Powering the great American comeback is based on the singular focus of providing clean air, land and water for all Americans, while harnessing the greatness of the American economy.”
It is true that repealing the Obama-era EPA’s 2009 “endangerment finding” will leave intact federal rules meant to limit harmful emissions of criteria air pollutants identified more than 50 years ago in the Clean Air Act. Those pollutants include noxious gases like sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide that cause asthma, lung issues and neurological damage.
The mass introduction of catalytic converters on new motor vehicles in the 1970s helped drastically curtail emissions of those gases over the next two decades, and the devices will surely remain on gas-powered cars and trucks to ensure they continue meeting federal standards. (Electric vehicles, notably, do not have converters because they have no tailpipe emissions.)
Experts disagreed, however, with Zeldin’s suggestion that there would not be “clean air” implications from the move to wipe out a generation of climate-focused regulations.
“Carbon dioxide pollution and other greenhouse gases are correlated with the production of other air pollutants like particulate matter and nitrogen oxides,” said Erik Nordman, director of the Institute for Public Utilities at Michigan State University.
“Measures that reduce carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases often reduce those other pollutants. That’s a co-benefit of these greenhouse gas regulations. So by removing or lowering standards for greenhouse gases, we would expect those other pollutants that are tightly correlated with greenhouse gases to increase,” he said in a phone interview.
Catalytic converters are one example of the link between what Zeldin called “traditional” pollutants and greenhouse gases.
The devices work by causing chemical reactions that transform highly toxic criteria pollutants into less harmful — or in some cases harmless — gases and substances. One byproduct is harmless water vapor. Another primary one is carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that causes climate change in the long term but is not instantly poisonous to humans at low ambient levels.
But even as converters have become more effective over time, academic research shows, they still do not block all of the most air-quality-harming pollutants. And because vehicles that use more fuel have higher emissions, the risk for worsened air quality is greater.
Nordman said the Trump administration’s endangerment finding repeal “kind of locks in a lower standard, so that will result in cars that are less fuel efficient than they might have been otherwise. That will result in greater pollution than we would have seen otherwise.”
The environmental policy expert added that those impacts will play out most over the longer term because “energy and transportation infrastructure that we’re building today will be more polluting than it otherwise could be, and we’re going to lock in that pollution for decades.”
He said other Trump administration actions — like the order to keep a coal plant open in Michigan — will have more immediate impacts on air quality.
Jeff Holmstead, who was an EPA official under former President George W. Bush, said Thursday he expected little near-term impact in air quality from the federal policy change, noting that automakers “have very long planning cycles.”
But Tom Luben, a senior research scientist at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and former air pollution researcher at the EPA for almost 20 years, was blunt in condemning the Trump administration’s repeal of the endangerment finding.
The action, Luben wrote ahead of the announcement, “would threaten the health of millions of Americans.”
“An increase in ground-level ozone concentrations has been linked to respiratory health problems ranging from decreased lung function and asthma exacerbations to increased emergency department visits and hospital admissions,” he added, similarly raising air quality concerns.
Luben continued: “Certain parts of the population are especially vulnerable to these effects, including children, older adults, pregnant people, and individuals with pre-existing health conditions.”
Beyond air quality, the research scientist also lamented climate-related impacts of the policy change.
“In addition to increased air pollution, the proliferation of extremely hot days, floods, storms, droughts, and fires linked to a changing climate will impact the health of the American people.”
In announcing the repeal move, however, Trump dismissed climate-change concerns: “… this has nothing to do with public health. This was all a scam.”
gschwab@detroitnews.com
@GrantSchwab
“Defenseman C. Reid will spend next year at college in Michigan” is a sentence that has been said before. The first time, it was about incoming Michigan State star defenseman Chase Reid, a presumptive top-five pick in the upcoming NHL draft. Now, Michigan has secured a defenseman C. Reid of their own — Cam Reid of the Kitchener Rangers.
This is likely to confuse many people, so here are four quick ways to tell them apart. First, they are probably wearing different colors. Second, if one of them says “eh,” that’s Cam, as he’s from Aylmer, Ontario while Chase is from Chesterfield, Michigan. Third, Chase is two inches taller at six-foot-two. Fourth, they don’t look very similar. We will likely gain a fifth way after the draft as Chase is unlikely to fall to the Nashville Predators at tenth, which is who drafted Cam, but we can’t say for sure yet, so we’ll stick with four for now.
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Bits aside, Reid committing to Michigan is a big get for the Wolverines — albeit, not an unexpected one. This move was rumored for months, and Scott Wheeler of The Athletic reported that Reid had been planning the move since December. Still, to actually land the commitment is significant for the Wolverines as it bolsters an already-strong blue line for Michigan.
As previously mentioned, Reid is from Aylmer and grew up playing for the Aylmer Flames. He’s six feet tall and 194 pounds and shoots left, much to the chagrin of anyone who wanted another right shot for Michigan (that d-core is almost entirely lefties). Reid is a two-way defenseman who ran the Kitchener Rangers power play and he’s known for his explosive skating. With him and defenseman Henry Mews on the back end, Michigan’s power play would have two stars manning the point.
As captain this season, Reid led the Rangers to the Memorial Cup, where they defeated Landon DuPont and the Everett Silvertips. And there is a very realistic chance that the two of them will be teammates together next year as Michigan is currently leading the pack in recruiting DuPont. He was reportedly on campus this week and will be touring Michigan State as well.
Even if DuPont doesn’t come, the Wolverines’ defensive core is absolutely stacked with Reid and Mews. Reid will be another key chip as Michigan tries again to get over the hump of the Frozen Four.
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — June 19th is also Juneteenth, which signifies when the final African-American slaves in the United States learned of their freedom in Galveston, Texas, in 1865.
It became a federal holiday in 2021, and it’s celebrated strongly in West Michigan.
In Kalamazoo, there will be festivities in Bronson Park from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, including food, dancing, and music.
“That’s very typical of how African Americans or people from the African diaspora celebrate,” said Dr. Sherrie Fuller, Director of Education & Training in the Vice President’s Area for Diversity and Inclusion. “It’s always food, it’s always dance, it’s all this music and it’s festive.”
This Juneteenth is a reminder of how far Black Americans have come, but a difficult reminder that there is still a long way to go for equality.
This week, a Black teenager was handcuffed and detained in the Washington Heights neighborhood in Battle Creek.
The boy’s family accused the officer of racial profiling, and the Battle Creek Police chief stands by his actions.
Dr. L.E. Johnson II of the Center for Afrocentric Thought was disgusted by the officer’s actions.
“What type of bias and prejudice are we dealing with here?” Dr. Johnson II said. “What that officer did was put blight on a legacy of a community that has worked hard to make things better for everybody. It was horrible what he did. He should be ashamed. He should be ashamed.”
Western Michigan University hosted a performance from Rootead on Friday afternoon at the multicultural center at the Trimpe Building.
Performers danced and played drums, focusing on their cultural roots.
“I believe people were able to have an opportunity to just kind of reflect on what the purpose of Juneteenth or the celebration of the holiday is all about, so it’s phenomenal,” said Dr. Fuller.
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Battle Creek will have a Juneteenth family day at Claude Evans Park on Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Friday is Juneteenth. The long-celebrated holiday, which was officially declared a federal holiday in 2021, marks the day in 1865 when enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free — two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation.
In Grand Rapids, a parade steps off at noon at the corner of Eastern and Hall. It will head to Dickinson Buffer Park, where an opening ceremony gets underway at 1 p.m. The celebration continues until the evening and will feature food, vendors and activities for kids.
Organizers say it’s important to recognize Juneteenth.
“We cannot properly deal with and accept our future if we don’t understand our past,” said Rhaeven Richardson with West Michigan Jewels of Africa. “So it’s very important for us to come together and bring notoriety for what Juneteenth stands for and how important it is — not just for people of color, but for everyone in this country.”
There are plenty of other Juneteenth events happening in Grand Rapids and around West Michigan. For a full list, click here.
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