The March for Science on April 14 and Earth Day on April 22 are likely to generate big crowds demonstrating against Trump administration policies. Here are some issues they’ll be marching about.
One of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s signature moves has been to put the brakes on stringent fuel economy rules.
AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
An academic suing the EPA over its decision to bar certain scientists from serving on advisory boards says the EPA needs to address legitimate criticisms to rebuild after Pruitt.
Healthy aquatic vegetation in the Chesapeake Bay.
Cassie Gurbisz/University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
Bill Dennison, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science e Robert J. Orth, Virginia Institute of Marine Science
An ambitious plan to cut the flow of nutrients into the Chesapeake Bay has produced historic regrowth of underwater seagrasses. These results offer hope for other polluted water bodies.
Utah prairie dog, Bryce Canyon National Park.
Donald Hobern
Congress is moving to cut back the Endangered Species Act and give more power to states. But a recent study shows that state laws are weaker and states have few resources to protect species at risk.
Coal stockpile at a Milwaukee, Wisconsin power plant, 2011.
Michael Pereckas
A recent study shows that large piles of coal produce measurable quantities of fine particulate air pollution within a 25-mile radius. Covering coal trains and storage piles could reduce the problem.
To comply with air pollution laws, midwest energy companies built tall smokestacks to displace pollutants. This one at Indiana’s Rockport Generating Station is 1,038 feet high, just 25 feet shorter than the Eiffel Tower.
Don Sniegowski
Trump administration officials argue that states can regulate more effectively than the federal government. But without leadership from the top, federalism may allow red states to avoid acting.
Harmful algae bloom in Lake Erie, Oct. 13, 2011.
NASA Earth Observatory
Nitrogen and phosphorus are polluting US waters, creating algae blooms and dead zones. New research confirms that voluntary steps are failing in the Gulf of Mexico and unlikely to work in Lake Erie.
Browns Canyon National Monument, Colorado.
Bob Wick, BLM
Within the next month, the Trump administration may move to abolish or shrink up to two dozen national monuments. Our experts explain why these sites matter and whether presidents can undo them.
Snow geese settle on a wetland in North Dakota. If the Trump administration successfully rescinds the Clean Water Rule, many wetlands might lose federal protection.
Krista Lundgren USFWS/Flickr
The Clean Water Rule spells out which streams, wetlands and other water bodies receive federal protection. The Trump administration wants to repeal it, but will face high hurdles in court.
A May Day protest in San Francisco. The state is at odds with the Trump administration on a number of policies, notably immigration and environment.
AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
As President Trump pulls the US out of the Paris climate accord, China is cutting pollution and dominating clean energy manufacturing. Now it can claim global leadership for those actions.
Heavy gray smog blankets northeastern China, including Beijing and Tianjin, on Dec. 18, 2016 during a five-day air pollution ‘red alert.’
NASA Earth Observatory
New research shows that importing goods from low-wage countries has helped US manufacturers shift production to less-polluting industries, produce less waste and spend less on pollution control.
The EPA’s effort to remove lead from gasoline saved a lot of infant lives.
Kimberly White KW/DH via Reuters
Forests are valuable for many uses, including timber, clean water, wildlife habitat and recreation. Stresses on U.S. forests include wildfires, pest invasions and development of private lands.
President Trump holds up the signed Energy Independence Executive Order, Tuesday, March 28, 2017, at EPA headquarters in Washington, surrounded by coal miners and members of his Cabinet.
AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
President Trump’s latest executive order weakens or reverses multiple rules and policies designed to slow climate change. Scholars explain the order’s impact.
The outdoor retail industry is moving its lucrative trade show out of Utah after disputes with state officials over land conservation.
AP Photo/Rick Bowmer
President Trump says environmental regulation kills jobs. To fight back, conservation advocates need to show that protecting the environment can produce jobs and local benefits.
Coal train in Missouri. Assigning a social cost to carbon emissions puts a price on activities that generate them, such as burning fossil fuels.
Scott Granneman/Flickr
To weigh the economic impact of climate change policies, we need to estimate the social cost of carbon. An economist explains how it’s done and why the Trump administration shouldn’t end the practice.
Prairie potholes in South Dakota are important breeding and feeding areas for many types of birds. Under the Clean Water Rule, farmers cannot fill them in or discharge pollutants into them without a permit.
Laura Hubers, USFWS/Flickr
President Trump signed an executive order to roll back the 2015 Clean Water Rule. Two water experts explain why the rule alarms farmers and ranchers concerned about over-regulation.
New research shows that exposure to fine particulate air pollution may double the risk of dementia in older women by increasing growth of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain.
Sheep move through public lands near Shoshone, Idaho.
BLM/Flickr
Republicans in Congress are working to kill an Obama administration rule that broadens public input into federal land use planning. Hunters, fishermen, hikers and environmental groups are opposed.
Professor of History and Director of the Center for the Study of Inequalities, Social Justice, and Policy, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York)
Dana and David Dornsife Professor of Psychology and Director of the Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences