*By Madison Alworth*
With its latest emissions policy, the Trump administration has effectively overhauled President Obama's environmental legacy, said Earther reporter Brian Kahn.
"You couple this also with the international view of dropping out of the Paris Agreement ー or at least announcing our intent to do thatーas well as what we're seeing with the Department of Interior and its attempt to lease more oil and gas drilling sites on federal land," Kahn said Tuesday in an interview on Cheddar. "Taken as a whole, these policies really signal a rapid and major change."
The administration [introduced](https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-proposes-affordable-clean-energy-ace-rule) a new rule, "Affordable Clean Energy," on Tuesday, which will roll back many of the restrictions on coal emissions that President Obama put in place.
The new plan allows individual states to regulate their coal plants' pollution rather than adhering to a federal standard.
"The Clean Power Plan was going to reduce them by about 35 percent them by 2030, and this will lead to a 1 percent decrease over that time period," Kahn said.
The new plan is largely perceived as a means to prop up the coal industry. But in a statement released Tuesday, the EPA said the rule “empowers states, promotes energy independence, and facilitates economic growth and job creation.”
"We are putting our great coal miners back to work," President Trump said during a rally in West Virginia on Tuesday night.
If the plan is enacted, Kahn said the results may be disastrous.
"So, we are going to see more carbon emissions. More importantly than that, we'll also see a lot of pollution," he said. "That will have very adverse impacts on the American public."
The administration's plan will move to an open, public comment period before it will need final approval from the president.
For full interview [click here] (https://cheddar.com/videos/trump-administration-announces-new-emission-policy).
Researchers report harmful levels of toxic lead were found in the bones of 46% of bald eagles sampled in 38 states. Similar rates of lead exposure were found in golden eagles, according to their study Thursday in the journal Science.
As more and more states end mask mandates and ease other COVID restrictions, discussions about the endemic phase of the pandemic have been growing. For weeks, scientists have warned about how contagious the omicron variant is, but now it seems the tone has shifted and governors are rolling back policies they've had in place for months. Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding, epidemiologist and senior fellow at the Federation of American Scientists, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss what the next phase of the pandemic might look like, how to act now that mask mandates are ending, and if we should be worried about another variant emerging.
Swedish electric motorcycle maker Cake says its mission is to inspire society to adopt a zero-emission lifestyle. The company admits this is a lofty goal that covers a lot of ground - so it's starting with the world of urban mobility and last-mile deliveries. The company also has an agreement in place with NorthVolt to continually improve the environmental impact of batteries for electric vehicles. Stefan Ytterborn, Founder & CEO of Cake, joins Cheddar Climate to discuss.
One retailer and publicly-traded company says it is on a mission to inspire a new generation of consumers to think secondhand - first. thredUP is one of the world's largest resale platforms for women's and kids' apparel, shoes, and accessories. The company says it is changing the way consumers shop and ushering in a more sustainable future for the fashion industry. Anthony Marino, President of thredUP, joins Cheddar Climate to discuss.
German vaccine maker BioNTech unveiled plans Wednesday to establish manufacturing facilities in Africa that would boost the availability of much-needed medicines on the continent.
As we celebrate Black History Month, Cheddar is highlighting prominent Black Americans who are carving their own historic paths and trailblazing in their industries. Today we feature Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett.
