FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 5th, 2021
CONTACT
Cara Cook
Director of Programs, ANHE
cara@envirn.org
(585) 469-2383
Nurses Call for Stronger Clean Cars Standards to Protect Health
[Washington, DC] (August 5th, 2021) – Today, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a proposal to revise greenhouse gas standards for new light-duty cars and trucks for model years 2023 – 2026. This proposal would replace the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAHE) Vehicles Rule finalized under the Trump Administration. In response to the proposal, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments’ (ANHE) Executive Director, Katie Huffling, MS, RN, CNM, FAAN released the following statement:
“Nurses support EPA’s proposal to reverse course and tighten cleaner car standards as an initial step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. Strong clean cars standards are needed to provide meaningful pollution reductions, health protections, and consumer cost-savings.
“Yet, with the urgent impacts of climate change on health clearer and more dire, we need the administration to go beyond simply undoing the rollbacks of the previous administration. Cleaner cars standards should be reflective of the robust response required to reduce carbon pollution and accelerate a dramatic transition to zero-emissions vehicles. Nurses are calling on EPA to set stronger emissions standards for light duty vehicles through at least 2030.
“For far too long, communities living near major roadways have been breathing in dirty air which is directly harming their health. Cleaning up transportation pollution for communities and populations disproportionately exposed and harmed by tailpipe emissions is necessary to promote environmental justice and equity, which EPA and this Administration have indicated as a priority.
“Cleaner and more efficient vehicles means cleaner air, healthier people, and a thriving economy. The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is urging EPA to move forward with ambitious cleaner car standards that meet the scale of the climate crisis and protect health.”
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The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments is the only national nursing organization focused solely on the intersection of health and the environment. The mission of the Alliance is to promote healthy people and healthy environments by educating and leading the nursing profession, advancing research, incorporating evidence-based practice, and influencing policy.
