Federal officials have declared Yellowstone River fish too toxic for human consumption after a train derailment that occurred back in June.
The Montana Fish, Wildlife &amp; Parks (MFWP) <a href="https://fwp.mt.gov/homepage/news/2023/sep/0919-state-agencies-issue-consumption-advisory-for-all-fish-species-on-yellowstone-river-near-train-derailment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> a consumption advisory on Tuesday afternoon declaring the discovery of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) across multiple fish species. MFWP stated that the source of the toxins remains unknown. MFWP advised that no fish from the river be consumed anywhere, even beyond their advisory area.
“Out of an abundance of precaution and unknown conditions in adjacent sections of the river, those with specific concerns may want to avoid consuming all species of fish from the Yellowstone River at any location until more is known on the severity and prevalence of this contamination,” stated MFWP.
The PAHs discovered were naphthalene, 1-methylnaphthalene, 2-methylnaphthalene, and acenaphthylene. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies naphthalene, 1-methylnaphthalene, 2-methylnaphthalene, as cancer-causing agents, but doesn’t classify acenaphthylene as cancer-causing.
Apart from cancer, the CDC notes that PAHs have been associated with the <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbons/health_effects.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">onset</a> of various pulmonary, gastrointestinal, renal, and dermatological issues.
The consumption advisory affects all fish species in the river spanning from the Indian Fort Fishing Access Site (FAS) near the census-designated place of Reed Point to the Highway 212 bridge in the city of Laurel. That’s roughly 45 miles, longer than the initial MFWP emergency closure enacted over the train derailment back in June. That closure spanned from Reed Point to the city of Columbus, roughly 18 miles.
MFWP explained that the PAHs source was unknown &#8212; despite the train derailment &#8212; due to the natural occurrence of some PAHs in the environment, like shale rock, and the introduction of other common materials like oil, gas, plastics, and pesticides.
In June, 10 cars transporting asphalt liquified petroleum, molten sulfur, and scrap metal <a href="https://response.epa.gov/site/site_profile.aspx?site_id=16083" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fell</a> into the Yellowstone River after the 52-car freight train derailed when the Twin Bridges railroad bridge collapsed. The train’s crew reported no injuries.
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The highway bridge parallel to the railroad bridge was closed and demolished in 2021. The bridge passed a safety inspection in May, according to a spokesman for the entity that maintains the bridge, Montana Rail Link (MRL), in a statement to the Associated Press.
MRL <a href="https://www.montanarail.com/2023/06/unified-command-press-release-as-of-1230-june-29/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that the cause of the derailment was unknown. The Federal Railroad Administration hasn’t <a href="https://railroads.dot.gov/elibrary-search?search_api_fulltext=%2522Montana%2520Rail%2520Link%2522&amp;sort_by=field_effective_date&amp;items_per_page=5&amp;field_effective_date%255Bmin%255D&amp;field_effective_date%255Bmax%255D&amp;f%255B0%255D=document_series:14786" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> a Factual Investigation Report naming a probable cause for the incident.
The EPA <a href="https://response.epa.gov/sites/16083/files/Stillwater%2520MT%2520Derailment%2520Press%2520Release%252020230626.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a> in its press release immediately following the derailment that asphalt globules were detected downstream and in the body of the river. However, the EPA said that the asphalt waste wasn’t water soluble and wouldn’t affect water quality.
In a site <a href="https://response.epa.gov/sites/16083/files/EPA%2520Stillwater%2520Train%2520Derailment%2520Site%2520Update%252020230815.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">update</a> last month, the EPA said that there were no known threats to public health from the spill. The agency noted that local cleanup crews were only targeting “actionable asphalt material,” or only that which could be removed without causing “significant damage to natural habitat” like sediment and vegetation. As a result, the EPA reported that the crews have been breaking down the material into smaller pieces and covering them with sediment to “aid in the natural breakdown process.”
This practice is part of Phase 1 of the cleanup effort, which <a href="https://response.epa.gov/sites/16083/files/Stillwater%2520MT%2520Derailment%2520Press%2520Release%252020230907.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">began</a> early last month and will last until next spring. Phase 2 is scheduled for next summer.
Per that update, crews collected approximately 231,700 pounds of asphalt out of the estimated 419,400 pounds of asphalt.
Tuesday’s consumption advisory followed another from last month, which more narrowly affected mountain whitefish following the discovery of elevated phenanthrene levels, another PAH. Phenanthrene wasn’t discovered in the more recent sampling that resulted in this week’s sweeping consumption advisory. The EPA doesn’t classify phenanthrene as a cancer-causing agent.

Fish

Yellowstone River Fish Toxic After Train Derailment; Officials Warn Against Consumption

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Food

General

Train

U.S.

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/anheuser-busch" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anheuser-Busch</a>, the parent company of embattled beer brand <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/bud-light" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bud Light</a>, agreed to pay over half a million dollars to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Protection Agency</a> after being accused of violating the Clean Air Act. 
The beer manufacturer <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/anheuser-busch-llc-required-improve-safety-fort-collins-brewery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">will pay</a> $537,000 in fines and implement a “comprehensive safety review” at 11 of the Anheuser-Busch plants that use anhydrous ammonia, according to the EPA. The settlement was in part spurred on by an accident at an Anheuser-Busch facility in 2018 in Fort Collins, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/colorado" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colorado</a>, that <a href="https://www.coloradoan.com/story/money/business/2023/06/05/anheuser-busch-fined-for-violating-clean-air-act-fort-collins-budweiser-brewery/70290783007/#:~:text=Anheuser%2DBusch%20has%20agreed%20to,Right%2Dto%2DKnow%20Act.">left two workers</a> injured after an ammonia leak. 
“This settlement with Anheuser-Busch sends a clear message to companies that store hazardous materials like anhydrous ammonia that they have an obligation to follow regulations designed to protect our communities and environment from potentially catastrophic consequences of accidents,” EPA Regional Administrator K.C. Becker said. “Failure to comply with the law puts first responders and members of the surrounding community in harm’s way.” 
Anheuser-Busch facilities in New Hampshire, California, Colorado, Texas, Ohio, Florida, New York, Virginia, Georgia, and Missouri will all undergo comprehensive reviews on their storage of anhydrous ammonia, which is used in the production of beer. 
Facilities in New Hampshire, Colorado, and California were all the subject of an EPA investigation from 2016 to 2019. 
The agency claimed that Anheuser-Busch failed &#8220;to comply with recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices.&#8221;
The settlement comes as Anheuser-Busch has seen several months of financial tumult after partnering with transgender-identifying activist Dylan Mulvaney. According to some reports, Anheuser-Busch has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/anheuser-busch-inbev-market-value-plunges-further-staggering-27-billion-drop-since-mulvaney-fiasco-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lost as much as $27 billion</a> in market value since the debut of the Mulvaney partnership. 
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The company had a $134.55 billion value as of March 31 before it plunged to $107.44 billion by the end of May, according to Dow Jones Market Data Group. The company’s stock plummeted 19.98% from its high in March. That 20% drop enters the zone of a bear market.
In large part, the backlash has been driven by conservative activists, who have encouraged Americans to boycott the popular beverage. 
“We believe there is a subset of American consumers who will not drink a Bud Light for the foreseeable future,” Jared Dinges, beverage analyst at JPMorgan Chase, said last month. “We believe a 12% to 13% volume decline on an annualized basis would be a reasonable assumption.”

Budweiser And Bud Light Losing Market Share In U.S. As Craft Beer Continues Gain In Popularity

Another Hit: Bud Light Manufacturer Settles With EPA Over Alleged Environmental Violations

Anheuser-Busch

Bud Light

Business

Colorado

Environment

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/supreme-court" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Supreme Court</a> on Thursday slashed the Environmental Protection Agency&#8217;s (EPA) regulatory control over water bodies in a win for conservative critics who argued the agency wielded too much power.
The court ruled that the 1972 Clean Water Act, which allows the EPA to regulate wetlands, only applies to wetlands that are obviously connected to larger regulated water bodies.
The case arose from a situation of an Idaho couple, Michael and Chantell Sackett, who wanted to build a home on land that the EPA considered a protected wetland.
The EPA argued the &#8220;wetlands&#8221; on the Sacketts&#8217; property should be classified as &#8220;waters of the United States&#8221; because they were near a ditch that fed into a creek, which fed into Priest Lake, according to court documents.
In the court&#8217;s <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/21-454_4g15.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opinion</a>, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that a protected wetland must have a &#8220;continuous surface connection&#8221; to a larger body of water. An underground connection that is not obvious does not give the EPA regulatory power, the court ruled.
&#8220;In sum, we hold that the [Clean Water Act] extends to only those &#8216;wetlands with a continuous surface connection to bodies that are ‘waters of the United States’ in their own right,&#8217; so that they are &#8216;indistinguishable&#8217; from those waters,&#8221; Alito wrote.
The Clean Water Act is meant to allow the EPA to regulate pollution in &#8220;waters of the United States,&#8221; but it does not define &#8220;waters of the United States,&#8221; which allowed the EPA leeway on the definition.
The previous standard was <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/supreme-court-strips-federal-protections-from-some-wetlands-boosts-property-rights#" target="_blank" rel="noopener">determined</a> by former Justice Anthony Kennedy, who ruled that wetlands had to have a &#8220;significant nexus&#8221; to a nearby regulated body of water.
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Thursday&#8217;s ruling overturns a federal appeals court ruling, which ruled <a href="https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2021/08/16/19-35469.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in favor</a> of the EPA in 2021.
Justice Elena Kagan, considered to be one of the court&#8217;s more liberal justices, concurred with the judgment, but criticized the court for appointing &#8220;itself as the national decision-maker on environmental policy.&#8221;
&#8220;Because that is not how I think our Government should work — more, because it is not how the Constitution thinks our Government should work — I respectfully concur in the judgment only,&#8221; she wrote in a concurring opinion.
In 2017, Rep. John Duarte (R-CA) <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2017/08/14/obama-is-gone-but-not-his-administrations-crusade-to-crush-a-farmer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">paid</a> $1.1 million in civil penalties for plowing 22 acres of his farm that the government deemed wetlands near the Sacramento River.
&#8220;They’re going after us because we didn’t get a permit to plow, even though the Clean Water Act says no permit is needed and indeed no permit has ever been required or issued to a wheat farmer ever before; and we didn’t avoid some small wet spots in our field, even though they’re similar to many others commonly farmed through by farmers all over the US (and those seasonal wetlands are still present on our property, as they were before our plowing),&#8221; Duarte <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2017/08/14/obama-is-gone-but-not-his-administrations-crusade-to-crush-a-farmer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a> in an op-ed at the time.
&#8220;It will destroy an important California family business and many jobs,&#8221; he said of the financial penalties. &#8220;It will also give the federal government unlimited power to extract wealth from family farms and rural communities nationwide.&#8221;
Duarte&#8217;s farming business, Duarte Nursery, Inc., <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2017/08/14/obama-is-gone-but-not-his-administrations-crusade-to-crush-a-farmer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">employed</a> 500 people at the time.

TOPSHOT-US-UN-EVERGLADES-CLIMATE-COP26

Supreme Court Slashes Biden EPA’s Power Over Water Bodies

Supreme Court Slashes Biden EPA's Power Over Water Bodies

Biden Administration

Supreme Court

This article is adapted from today’s Morning Wire Afternoon Update. To listen to the podcast version, click <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/podcasts/morning-wire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Border Chaos
The Biden administration will reportedly direct Border Patrol agents to release illegal migrants into the U.S. with minimal processing and little oversight as soon as midnight strikes tonight. 
The administration <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mass-catch-and-release-biden-admin-releasing-migrants-into-u-s-with-no-ability-to-track-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sent</a> a memo to Border Patrol agents that directs them to release migrants into the U.S. interior without assigning them a court date or coming up with a plan to track them. The move comes as the administration struggles to contain a growing surge of illegal immigration prompted by the court-ordered repeal of Title 42. One DHS official said earlier this week, “We’re already breaking and we haven’t hit the starting line.” The U.S. hit a record on Tuesday, tallying more than 11,000 migrant apprehensions at the border in a single day.
Accused Chinese Spy Arrested
Federal authorities have arrested a United States citizen accused of being a Chinese Communist Spy. Daily Wire senior editor Ashe Short has more:
<blockquote>Litang Liang, a resident just outside of Boston, Massachusetts, was <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/feds-arrest-alleged-chinese-spy-boston" target="_blank" rel="noopener">charged</a> with plotting to act as an agent of a foreign government on Tuesday. Officials claim that Liang began communicating with the Chinese Communist Party in or around 2018 via several methods such as phone calls and over encrypted smartphone apps. The arrest comes just weeks after the feds busted an alleged Chinese Communist “police station” in New York City.</blockquote>
Trump Town Hall Reaction
In reaction to former President Donald Trump’s town hall Wednesday night on CNN, the network has come under fire from Left-leaning organizations both for platforming the former president, as well as how the event’s moderator, Kaitlan Collins, handled it. Here’s how “The View” reacted: 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
TAKEAWAYS FROM TRUMP&#39;S CNN TOWN HALL: After former Pres. Trump sat down on primetime television a day after being found liable for battery and defamation in the E. Jean Carroll civil case, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheView?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheView</a> co-hosts share their takes. <a href="https://t.co/cVclFZQmjA">https://t.co/cVclFZQmjA</a> <a href="https://t.co/mEqwQVASg8">pic.twitter.com/mEqwQVASg8</a>
&mdash; The View (@TheView) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheView/status/1656689265579810816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Meanwhile, CNN’s CEO Chris Licht is defending the network, reportedly saying that &#8220;America was served very well by what we did last night” and that Collins had a &#8220;masterful performance last night.&#8221;
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Feinstein Returns
The 89-year-old California Senator Dianne Feinstein <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feinstein-returns-to-senate-in-wheelchair-needs-lighter-schedule" target="_blank" rel="noopener">returned</a> to her duties in D.C. this week after missing several months of work due to a case of shingles. Feinstein was seen in a wheelchair and accompanied by Senate Majority Leader <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/chuck-schumer">Chuck Schumer</a>. The senator is reportedly “experiencing vision/balance impairments” and will need the wheelchair to get around the Capitol. Her return comes after weeks of fellow Democrats calling for her to resign.
EPA Could Send Energy Costs Soaring
The Environmental Protection Agency <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-epa-unveils-new-crackdown-on-power-plants" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> new carbon emissions standards today for power plants that burn coal and natural gas. The new regulations seek to cut carbon dioxide emissions from such power plants by 617 million metric tons. Jason Isaac, a director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told The Daily Wire that the new regulations are “far-reaching” and will inevitably raise power costs for households.
Monkey Pox No Longer An International Emergency
The World Health Organization said today Mpox — formerly known as Monkeypox — is no longer considered an international emergency after cases have dropped dramatically.
Woke College Puts Professor On Leave For Handing Out Jeremy’s Chocolate
A California community college professor was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woke-college-puts-professor-on-leave-for-handing-out-jeremys-chocolate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suspended</a> after he handed out Jeremy’s Chocolate bars to students. According to George Washington University law professor and blogger Jonathan Turley, David Richardson stocked a bowl with He/Him and She/Her candy bars, then told students to help themselves at an open house event. 
Madera Community College officials took the action as an endorsement of the “gender binary” and suspended him. Richardson told Turley he’s been banned from “non-public spaces” on campus, and denied access to his email as the school investigates him for “serious misconduct.” School officials claimed the gesture constituted harassment and discrimination against colleagues “based on gender.” Jeremy’s Chocolate is owned by Daily Wire’s parent company.
To listen to the audio version of this podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/morning-wire/id1576594336" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a>. And for more in-depth discussion of the biggest stories of the day, listen to the latest full episode of Morning Wire every morning.

Thursday stock photo

Thursday Afternoon Update: Border Chaos, Catch-And-Release, Accused Chinese Spy Arrested

Border

Dianne Feinstein

Donald Trump

Jeremy's Chocolate

Monkeypox

Morning Wire

Podcast

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Protection Agency</a> released new <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/climate-change?_gl=1*tkyqef*_ga*NzUzNDA5ODIxLjE2NzkzMjkzNzM.*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTY4MzgxMTg1OC4yMDcuMS4xNjgzODEzMDgzLjU5LjAuMA.." target="_blank" rel="noopener">carbon</a> emissions standards for power plants that burn coal and natural <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/oil-and-gas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gas</a>, a move which some <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">energy</a> experts and lawmakers caution will decrease power reliability and artificially increase electricity <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/inflation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">costs</a> for households.
The new <a href="https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-05/FRL-8536-02-OAR%20111EGU%20NPRM%2020230504_Admin.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">regulations</a> unveiled on Thursday morning would seek to avoid 617 million metric tons of total carbon dioxide emissions through 2042, equal to the emissions produced by half of the nation’s cars, as well as reduce the amount of particulate matter released into the atmosphere. The proposed limits would “require ambitious reductions in carbon pollution based on proven and cost-effective control technologies” at coal and natural gas plants, which account for 60% of power generation in the nation, according to <a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=427&amp;t=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the Energy Information Administration.
“By proposing new standards for fossil fuel-fired power plants, EPA is delivering on its mission to reduce harmful pollution that threatens people’s health and wellbeing,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-proposes-new-carbon-pollution-standards-fossil-fuel-fired-power-plants-tackle" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “EPA’s proposal relies on proven, readily available technologies to limit carbon pollution and seizes the momentum already underway in the power sector to move toward a cleaner future. Alongside historic investment taking place across America in clean energy manufacturing and deployment, these proposals will help deliver tremendous benefits to the American people, cutting climate pollution and other harmful pollutants, protecting people’s health, and driving American innovation.”
The release claimed that the new regulations would produce “climate and public health benefits” worth $85 billion over the next two decades, as well as prevent premature deaths and hospital visits as a result of decreased particulate matter emissions. The new rules had been widely expected for weeks before their public release.
Jason Isaac, a director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told The Daily Wire that the new regulations are “far-reaching” and will inevitably raise power costs for households.
“Carbon capture technologies are so expensive that the result will be the sudden retirement of reliable generation, and there will be nothing to replace it,” Isaac said. “This is a prime example of an unelected executive agency run amok, with a single-minded agenda of eliminating fossil fuels and controlling how we produce and consume energy regardless of the costs or consequences, all while doing nothing to mitigate a changing climate.”
The new emissions standards come months after the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/supreme-court-rules-against-bidens-epa-says-agency-does-not-have-authority-to-regulate-carbon-dioxide-emissions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled</a> in West Virginia v. EPA that federal agencies cannot assert “highly consequential power beyond what Congress could reasonably be understood to have granted.” Steve Milloy, a senior legal fellow at the Energy and Environmental Legal Institute, told The Daily Wire that the regulations have “no chance of withstanding” scrutiny from the Supreme Court but noted that a ruling might not come for many years, thereby allowing “much damage” to the power grid.
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The Biden administration has <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/climate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">established</a> a “whole-of-government effort” to reduce carbon emissions in the public and private sectors. Beyond the introduction of additional EPA rules that would aim to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-unveils-proposal-for-landmark-nationwide-crackdown-on-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">increase</a> nationwide adoption of electric cars, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/energy-secretary-granholm-supports-making-the-military-all-electric-by-2030" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voiced</a> support for a policy that would transition the military to rely exclusively upon electric vehicles by 2030.
West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, a frequent skeptic of Biden administration energy policies, announced on Wednesday that he would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manchin-shreds-biden-over-expected-crackdown-on-power-plants-reveals-how-he-will-respond" target="_blank" rel="noopener">oppose</a> every EPA nominee from the White House until the power plant rules are reversed.
“This administration is determined to advance its radical climate agenda and has made it clear they are hellbent on doing everything in their power to regulate coal and gas-fueled power plants out of existence, no matter the cost to energy security and reliability,” the lawmaker said.

President Biden

Biden EPA Unveils New Crackdown On Power Plants

Biden EPA Unveils New Crackdown On Coal And Natural Gas Power Plants

Climate Change

Energy

Inflation

Politics

<a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/west-virginia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">West Virginia</a> Democratic Senator <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/joe-manchin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Manchin</a> announced on Wednesday that he would oppose every <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/biden-administration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Biden administration</a> nominee for the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EPA</a> due to the environmental agency’s expected <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/climate-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crackdown</a> on emissions at <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">power</a> plants.
The forthcoming regulations, which are widely reported to be scheduled for publication on Thursday, would demand that power plants considerably reduce their carbon emissions by 2040, a rule that would force plants to use expensive carbon capture technology or switch to alternative fuel sources. Skeptics of the move are concerned that the policy would decrease energy reliability and artificially increase electricity costs for households.
Manchin, who is widely considered a centrist in the narrowly Democratic Senate and has frequently criticized Biden administration environmental policies, said in a <a href="https://www.manchin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/manchin-to-oppose-every-epa-nominee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> that he would refuse to vote for any future EPA nominees until the expected regulations are nixed.
“This administration is determined to advance its radical climate agenda and has made it clear they are hellbent on doing everything in their power to regulate coal and gas-fueled power plants out of existence, no matter the cost to energy security and reliability,” the lawmaker said. “This piles on top of a broader regulatory agenda being rolled out designed to kill the fossil industry by a thousand cuts.”
Manchin contended that the forthcoming crackdown would “impact nearly all fossil-fueled power plants” in the United States “without an adequate plan to replace the lost baseload generation.” Natural gas and coal are respectively responsible for generating 40% and 20% of electricity in the country, according to <a href="https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=427&amp;t=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the Energy Information Administration. The state of West Virginia, where Manchin is expected to compete for a third full term in the Senate, is meanwhile the fourth largest energy producer in the nation, according to more <a href="https://www.eia.gov/state/index.php?sid=WV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the agency.
“I fear that this administration’s commitment to their extreme ideology overshadows their responsibility to ensure long-lasting energy and economic security,” Manchin added.
The Biden administration has indeed <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/climate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">established</a> a “whole-of-government effort” to reduce carbon emissions in the public and private sectors. Beyond the introduction of additional EPA rules that would aim to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-unveils-proposal-for-landmark-nationwide-crackdown-on-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">increase</a> nationwide adoption of electric cars, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm voiced support for a policy which would transition the military to exclusively rely upon electric vehicles by the year 2030. The vehicles nevertheless require charging infrastructure and are currently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/only-20-of-americans-very-likely-to-buy-electric-for-their-next-car-even-as-some-states-want-100-adoption" target="_blank" rel="noopener">seen</a> by some as less reliable than those with internal combustion engines.
Manchin has also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manchin-calls-epas-push-for-electric-cars-a-trojan-horse-to-increase-dependence-on-china" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> the moves to increase electric vehicle reliance a “Trojan horse” that would increase American reliance on minerals <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/african-alliance-while-biden-pushes-electric-vehicles-china-leads-the-race-for-rare-earth-metals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dominated</a> by China, such as the lithium and cobalt necessary to manufacture electric car batteries. “I don&#8217;t believe that making progress on climate change should come at the expense of our national and energy security,” Manchin said in another statement. “I fully support Congress overturning these dangerous EPA regulations.&#8221;
Granholm has also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-energy-department-starts-crackdown-on-dishwashers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> new efficiency standards for gas stoves, dishwashers, beverage vending machines, electric motors, and several other product categories, claiming that the administration is “using all of the tools at our disposal to save Americans money while promoting innovations that will reduce carbon pollution and combat the climate crisis.”

Joe Manchin

Manchin Shreds Biden Over Expected Crackdown On Power Plants, Reveals How He Will Respond

Manchin Will Oppose ‘All EPA Nominees' From Biden Over Expected Crackdown On Power Plants

West Virginia

Senator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-manchin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Manchin</a> (D-WV) slammed the Biden administration&#8217;s new EPA rules around electric vehicles and tailpipe emissions.
In a statement Tuesday, Manchin blasted the EPA&#8217;s radical regulations plan intended to boost EV sales beginning in 2030 and accelerating in 2032. Manchin said the EPA&#8217;s ambitious goal of ensuring that 67% of new cars sold will be all-electric was market manipulation and a &#8220;Trojan horse&#8221; to increase America&#8217;s reliance on China for critical minerals. He urged Congress to overturn the rules.
<div id="press">
“The EPA is lying to Americans with false claims about how their manipulation of the market to boost EVs will help American energy security,&#8221; <a href="https://www.manchin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/manchin-statement-on-epas-radical-vehicle-emissions-standards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Manchin</a> said. &#8220;In reality, this is a Trojan horse. To meet these timelines will mean strengthening our reliance on minerals and technologies controlled by the Chinese. Taken in concert with the clear violation of the [Inflation Reduction Act] to undermine provisions that would actually secure these supply chains, this Administration is taking steps that will only result in a more energy secure and powerful China. I don&#8217;t believe that making progress on climate change should come at the expense of our national and energy security. I fully support Congress overturning these dangerous EPA regulations.&#8221;
Earlier this month, the administration rolled out a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-to-propose-rules-to-drastically-increase-ev-sales-crack-down-on-tailpipe-emissions-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">proposed</a> regulations package meant to drastically increase electric vehicle sales, as The Daily Wire reported. The rules would aim to make sure that EVs make up fully two-thirds of all new cars on the market by 2032. The radical new regulations would represent a quantum leap in EV sales; electric cars made up just 5.8% of all new vehicles sold.
Last week, the administration rolled out new regulations for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-unveils-proposal-for-landmark-nationwide-crackdown-on-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tailpipe emissions</a> meant to facilitate the transition. The “more stringent” standards released by the agency would <a href="https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/lmdv-multi-pollutant-emissions-my-2027-nprm-2023-04.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">induce</a> a 56% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions for light-duty vehicles as well as a 44% decrease for medium-duty vehicles, while similar standards were <a href="https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/hd-ghg-veh-phase-3-nprm-2023-04.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced</a> for heavy-duty vehicles.
The EPA asserted that the proposed standards would decrease carbon dioxide emissions by 10 billion tons over the next three decades and produce as much as $1.6 trillion in value. Skeptics, on the other hand, contend that the move would ignore widespread desires for affordable and reliable conventional vehicles.
Manchin, meanwhile, has become a thorn in the side of the administration&#8217;s aggressive environmental policymaking. The critical vote that helped pass the $740 billion Inflation Reduction Act, Manchin has frequently criticized how the Executive Branch is implementing the law. Most recently, he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/manchin-blasts-biden-admin-over-new-ev-tax-credit-regulations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">blasted</a> a proposed rule that would loosen regulations on the electric vehicle tax credit.
“Yet again – the guidance released by the Department of the Treasury completely ignores the intent of the Inflation Reduction Act,” Manchin said. “It is horrific that the Administration continues to ignore the purpose of the law which is to bring manufacturing back to America and ensure we have reliable and secure supply chains. American tax dollars should not be used to support manufacturing jobs overseas. It is a pathetic excuse to spend more taxpayer dollars as quickly as possible and further cedes control to the Chinese Communist Party in the process.”
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“The guidance includes a 60-day comment period and I ask for every American to comment,” he added. “My comment is simple: stop this now – just follow the law.”
</div>

Manchin Calls EPA’s Push For Electric Cars A ‘Trojan Horse’ To Increase Dependence On China

Manchin Calls EPA's Push For Electric Cars A 'Trojan Horse' To Increase Dependence On China

Electric cars

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Protection Agency</a> proposed new <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vehicle</a> emissions standards on Wednesday that would aim to increase adoption of <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/electric-vehicles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">electric cars</a> and battle <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/climate-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">climate change</a>.
The “more stringent” standards released by the agency would <a href="https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/lmdv-multi-pollutant-emissions-my-2027-nprm-2023-04.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">induce</a> a 56% decrease in greenhouse gas emissions for light-duty vehicles as well as a 44% decrease for medium-duty vehicles, while similar standards were <a href="https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/hd-ghg-veh-phase-3-nprm-2023-04.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced</a> for heavy-duty vehicles. The regulations would seek to change market conditions such that electric vehicles constitute two-thirds of new sales for light-duty vehicles and nearly half of new sales for medium-duty vehicles by 2032.
“By proposing the most ambitious pollution standards ever for cars and trucks, we are delivering on the Biden-Harris administration’s promise to protect people and the planet, securing critical reductions in dangerous air and climate pollution and ensuring significant economic benefits like lower fuel and maintenance costs for families,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/biden-harris-administration-proposes-strongest-ever-pollution-standards-cars-and" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “These ambitious standards are readily achievable thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which is already driving historic progress to build more American-made electric cars and secure America’s global competitiveness.”
The proposals follow aggressive regulations and legislative packages from the White House over the past two years in favor of electric vehicles and an overall transition toward renewable energy. The Biden administration, which has <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/climate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">established</a> a “whole-of-government effort” to reduce carbon emissions and incentivize renewables, has also introduced new emissions <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/climate-alarmists-senator-tim-scott-blasts-energy-department-over-new-power-standards-for-certain-homes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rules</a> for gas stoves, air conditioners, and mobile homes.
The EPA asserted that the proposed standards would decrease carbon dioxide emissions by 10 billion tons over the next three decades and produce as much as $1.6 trillion in value. Skeptics, on the other hand, contend that the move would ignore widespread desires for affordable and reliable conventional vehicles.
“With this new set of proposals, the Biden administration is setting out to use the power of government as a weapon to remove from the market the gas-powered trucks and cars that everyday consumers rely on, in favor of the kinds of cars that are most popular in liberal bastions,” Alliance for Consumers Executive Director O. H. Skinner said in comments provided to The Daily Wire. “Everyday consumers deserve better. The federal government shouldn&#8217;t be forcing progressive lifestyle choices on consumers. Biden and his activist allies think that they have found a way to force companies and consumers to comply with a progressive worldview without consequence or public scrutiny, and we are saying enough is enough.&#8221;
The ambitious proposals come shortly after a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/only-20-of-americans-very-likely-to-buy-electric-for-their-next-car-even-as-some-states-want-100-adoption" target="_blank" rel="noopener">poll</a> from the Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center revealed that only 19% of Americans said they are “extremely likely” or “very likely” to select an electric vehicle for their next car purchase. Dominant reasons for hesitance toward electric cars were prohibitively high costs, a lack of charging stations, personal preference for gas vehicles, concerns with charging times, and a lack of confidence in current battery technology.
The concerns regarding electric vehicles could present obstacles to the successful rollout of the EPA regulations and similar moves from states attempting to encourage universal adoption of the nascent technology. California Air Resources Board officials issued <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/california-expected-to-ban-sale-of-new-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rules</a> last year requiring 35% of new vehicles to be zero-emission by 2026, a standard that will rise to a 68% benchmark by 2030 and a 100% benchmark by 2035. States such as Massachusetts, Washington, and Virginia have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/two-more-states-follow-californias-ban-on-new-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">passed</a> laws conforming their states to the standards.
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The EPA granted two waivers of federal standards last month to the California Air Resources Board so that the state can enforce requirements for heavy-duty truck manufacturers to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-epa-gives-california-special-authority-to-phase-out-heavy-duty-gas-trucks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">enact</a> increasingly strict standards such that 100% of new sales are zero-emission by 2045.

President Biden And Vice President Harris Deliver Remarks At Atlanta University Center Consortium

Biden Admin Unveils Proposal For Landmark Nationwide Crackdown On Gas Cars

Cars

electric vehicles

A massive <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fire</a> at a plastic recycling plant in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/indiana" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Indiana</a> led to the evacuation of around 2,000 people from the surrounding area while clouds of toxic smoke billowed into the sky on Tuesday. 
Authorities ordered the evacuation of a portion of Richmond, Indiana, a city of about 35,000 located on the eastern edge of the state, after an industrial fire at a storage facility the mayor said was a known “fire hazard.”
“They were under a city order to clean up and remediate that site,” Mayor Dave Snow <a href="https://apnews.com/article/fire-richmond-indiana-evacuation-b1de35fc763da8fbf7c774f2957fd01c?utm_source=homepage&amp;utm_medium=TopNews&amp;utm_campaign=position_07">told</a> the Associated Press. “We knew that was a fire hazard the way they were storing materials.”
Snow added in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dave.snow.549?hc_ref=ARTrDqk4aUqmFbRS9tyfGgdQ0oRlFkAVy76juxbbux62qadOFvjS7YP3bUH-yccU6zk&amp;fref=nf&amp;__xts__[0]=68.ARAJzpMKyLe5gA_xzZNszNeIXjHMDrh_4hg2Br5kcDmtPK6gbRWy59-Htr7Cf_LkTZ1gAVQMAa6uB9NKkbThndl5LDUyaD4--qD_S48zXU8eLpKyan6q8fNvYC90UT5UzDm81xyoO3MAw7GLAJJWhyHR1msP1gkKC6_NI7B_E_qhMWROFdFFDUwLUwxhazKcYrYkJKzTEOumvl5PLBGe4v3yKg5GI4MIBzyU4gifEtJeo9UAWkLBhOb2ywm_Ag5q-1_AiEZDb_oFkaLG_OrejWp2rUiQyPpZBBRaHGoCA0moSso">statement</a> on Facebook that the Environmental Protection Agency and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management were “on site and evaluating any potential hazards resulting from the fire. It may take them a while to complete their work. Once we have a report to share, we will convey the information.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Footage of a massive industrial fire in the city of Richmond, Indiana, located west of Dayton. Winds reportedly began carrying the smoke into Ohio around 4 p.m. Tuesday <a href="https://t.co/jJsqyzA9BG">https://t.co/jJsqyzA9BG</a> <a href="https://t.co/2SSWyQLe1C">pic.twitter.com/2SSWyQLe1C</a>
&mdash; FOX19 NOW (@FOX19) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOX19/status/1645911677500813313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Those who live within a half-mile radius of the factory were ordered to evacuate, with some finding refuge at a local church called Bethesda Worship Center or nearby hotels. 
“The smoke is definitely toxic,” <a href="https://fox59.com/indiana-news/evacuation-order-issued-as-large-fire-breaks-out-in-richmond/">said</a> Steve Jones, an Indiana State Fire Marshal. “This fire is going to burn for a few days.”
Richmond Fire Chief Tim Brown agreed with the mayor, saying that the location had received an “unsafe citation” in the past. “He has been warned several times,” he said. “I don’t know when exactly that was, but we were aware of the situation we were dealing with.”
Brown explained that the facility was filled “wall to wall” with plastics and that the fire was avoidable. “It is very frustrating for all of us,” he said, according to Fox 59. “The battalion chief on today was very frustrated when he pulled up because we knew it wasn’t a matter of if, it was a matter of when this was going to happen.”
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The smoke from the fire was blown into Ohio and could be seen from miles away.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
SMOKE from Richmond fire detected by area Doppler radar. Winds carry plume east along I-70 into Ohio just after 4pm Tuesday <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/INwx?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#INwx</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OHwx?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OHwx</a> <a href="https://t.co/qu65m5kUMj">pic.twitter.com/qu65m5kUMj</a>
&mdash; Brian Wilkes (@BrianWilkes59wx) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrianWilkes59wx/status/1645884193094660096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2023</a></blockquote>
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There were no injuries associated with the blaze initially reported. It is unclear how many days the fire might go on for.

View of flames of red-orange fire and motion clouds of black smoke covered sky

‘Definitely Toxic’: Massive Fire At Indiana Plastic Recycling Facility Forces Thousands To Evacuate

Massive Fire At Indiana Plastic Recycling Facility Forces Thousands To Evacuate

Disasters

Fire

Indiana

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Protection Agency</a> (EPA) is considering a plan to radically boost <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/electric-vehicles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">electric vehicle</a> sales in the U.S. beginning in 2030 and then accelerating in 2032, according to a report from The New York Times.
The EPA’s proposed rules would seek to ensure that 67% of all commercial passenger vehicles sold in the U.S. will be all-electric starting in 2032, sources <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/08/climate/biden-electric-cars-epa.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the Times. Last year, EVs made up just 5.8% of all vehicle sales.
“This is a massive undertaking,” said John Bozzella, president of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a lobbyist for U.S. and foreign automakers. “It is nothing short of a complete transformation of the automotive industrial base and the automotive market.”
Along with the unprecedented push for EV sales, the Biden administration is also expected to crack down on tailpipe emissions for cars made between 2027-2032, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-06/biden-to-propose-toughest-ever-rules-on-auto-pollution-to-spur-evs?sref=h5EZFUoq" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to Bloomberg. The new rules on tailpipe emissions would apply to cars and light trucks and are expected to be officially announced in Detroit on Wednesday.
Last week, the White House released a fact sheet announcing investments for the car industry to get EV sales to make up half of all new vehicle sales by 2030. As part of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which seeks “to bring a clean, safe, affordable, and reliable transportation future to Americans,” certain buyers receive tax credits for purchasing new and used EVs.
“These incentives complement investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other federal initiatives that are spurring the domestic manufacturing of EVs and batteries and the development of a national EV charging network that provides access to low income and disadvantaged communities,” the White House said in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/03/30/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-announces-new-private-and-public-sector-investments-for-affordable-electric-vehicles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>.
The new proposed EPA standards would push the U.S. to the front of the world for regulating carbon emissions, which the Biden administration argues is a leading factor in climate change. The European Union is phasing out all new gas-powered cars by 2035, and Canada and the U.K. have proposed similar gas-powered vehicle bans to the E.U., the Times reported.
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As the federal government signals to continue with heavy regulations on the industry, car manufacturers have recently pushed to produce more EVs, but for some manufacturers, that push has initially resulted in massive <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/electric-vehicle-makers-burning-cash-slammed-by-sky-high-costs-2022-11-14/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">losses</a>. Last month, Ford <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ford-projects-its-ev-division-will-lose-billions-this-year" target="_blank" rel="noopener">projected</a> it will lose $3 billion in 2023 as it pushes to produce more EVs and build electric battery plants in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Michigan.

President Joe Biden

Biden Admin To Propose Rules To Drastically Increase EV Sales, Crack Down On Tailpipe Emissions: Report

Biden Admin To Propose Rules To Drastically Increase EV Sales: Report

Executive

Joe Biden

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EPA</a> officials provided the state of <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">California</a> authority on Friday to phase out heavy duty trucks powered by <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/oil-and-gas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gasoline</a> over the next two decades.
Guidelines from the California Air Resources Board will require truck manufacturers to enact increasingly strict standards aimed to promote <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/electric-vehicles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">electric vehicles</a> between 2024 and 2035 such that all new truck sales are zero-emission by 2045. The EPA granted two waivers of federal standards so that California can enforce the requirements.
“This is a big deal for climate action. Last year, California became one of the first jurisdictions in the world with a real plan to end tailpipe emissions for cars,” Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) said in a <a href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2023/03/31/with-biden-administration-approval-california-ushers-in-new-era-of-clean-trucks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “Thanks to the Biden administration, we’re getting more zero-emission heavy duty trucks on the roads, expanding our world-leading efforts to cut air pollution and protect public health. We’re leading the charge to get dirty trucks and buses, the most polluting vehicles, off our streets, and other states and countries are lining up to follow our lead around the world.”
EPA Administrator Michael Regan lauded the move toward electric heavy duty vehicles. “Under the Clean Air Act, California has longstanding authority to address pollution from cars and trucks,” he said in a <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-grants-waivers-californias-highway-heavy-duty-vehicle-and-engine-emission" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “Today’s announcement allows the state to take additional steps in reducing their transportation emissions through these new regulatory actions.”
States such as Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington have adopted the truck standards established by the California Air Resources Board. Attorneys general from multiple states urged the EPA in a <a href="https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/States%20HD%20Truck%20Waiver%20Comments_FINAL.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> last year to approve the California waiver request.
Proponents of the new regulations note that California is the fifth-largest economy in the world and could arguably incentivize the market to develop new heavy duty electric vehicle solutions. Automakers, however, have not yet brought robust electric semi-truck offerings to the mass market: diesel semi-trucks can travel 2,100 miles on one tank of gas, according to an <a href="https://driveknight.com/blog/trucker-lifestyle/fun-facts-about-semi-trucks-the-trucking-industry/#:~:text=How%20Far%20Can%20The%20Average,around%20seven%20miles%20per%20gallon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">analysis</a> from Knight Transportation, while the recently <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1557236629412007937" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> Tesla Semi has a range of 500 miles.
Policy under the Biden administration has broadly favored nascent electric vehicle technology. Individuals who purchase certain electric cars can receive tax credits between $4,000 and $7,500 under the Inflation Reduction Act. “The climate crisis doesn’t care if your state is red or blue. It is an existential threat,” President Joe Biden <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/02/07/remarks-of-president-joe-biden-state-of-the-union-address-as-prepared-for-delivery/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commented</a> during his most recent State of the Union address. “We have an obligation to our children and grandchildren to confront it. I’m proud of how America is at last stepping up to the challenge.”
The California Air Resources Board also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/california-expected-to-ban-sale-of-new-gas-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> standards requiring that 35% of new vehicles must be entirely electric by 2026, a standard that will progressively apply to all new vehicles in the state by 2035. The Biden administration has <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/12/13/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-electric-vehicle-charging-action-plan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">set</a> the “ambitious target” of ensuring that electric vehicles constitute 50% of car sales in the United States by 2030.
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Ministers in the European Union likewise adopted a provisional agreement last year to completely eliminate carbon dioxide from roadways by 2035. The bloc has established the <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/clima/eu-action/climate-strategies-targets/2050-long-term-strategy_en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policy</a> of becoming “a climate-neutral society” by 2050 in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
Analysts have expressed concern that the power grid in California will be unable to handle the increased power demand arising from increased electric vehicle ownership. California officials asked residents to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/california-asks-residents-to-avoid-charging-electric-vehicles-due-to-blackout-risk-days-after-unveiling-new-gas-car-ban" target="_blank" rel="noopener">refrain</a> from charging their electric cars last summer amid a heat wave that threatened to overwhelm the grid and induce blackouts.

Gavin Newsom

Biden EPA Gives California Special Authority To Phase Out Heavy Duty Gas Trucks

Biden Administration Will Allow California To Phase Out Heavy Duty Gas Trucks

California

Oil and Gas

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/environmental-protection-agency-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Protection Agency</a> and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-justice" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justice Department</a> officials announced a lawsuit on Friday against <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/norfolk-southern" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Norfolk Southern</a>, the company at the center of the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/ohio-train-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">train derailment</a> and subsequent <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/chemicals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chemical</a> fallout in East Palestine, Ohio.
Local and state authorities previously evacuated all residents within one mile of the February 3 derailment and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/evacuation-ordered-ohio-governor-warns-major-explosion-could-send-shrapnel-a-mile-from-derailed-train" target="_blank" rel="noopener">started</a> a controlled burn of substances on the vehicle. Vinyl chloride, a human carcinogen used to manufacture PVC, was emitted from five train cars in the form of massive plumes of black smoke visible throughout eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Residents have since raised the alarm over health symptoms they experienced after the controlled burn.
The two agencies filed a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1577411/download" target="_blank" rel="noopener">complaint</a> seeking “penalties and injunctive relief for the unlawful discharge of pollutants, oil, and hazardous substances” under the Clean Water Act, as well as “declaratory judgment on liability for past and future costs” related to the incident under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.
“When a Norfolk Southern train derailed last month in East Palestine, Ohio, it released toxins into the air, soil, and water, endangering the health and safety of people in surrounding communities,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-and-epa-file-complaint-against-norfolk-southern-unlawful-discharge" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “With this complaint, the Justice Department and the EPA are acting to pursue justice for the residents of East Palestine and ensure that Norfolk Southern carries the financial burden for the harm it has caused and continues to inflict on the community.”
The complaint from the EPA and Justice Department said materials released from the train cars, such as vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, isobutylene, and benzene residue, have been “associated variously” with impaired fetal development, organ damage, cancers, and other health conditions with a sufficiently high degree of exposure. State and federal officials have repeatedly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-is-disgusting-j-d-vance-scrapes-creek-bed-with-stick-after-train-crash-oily-substance-emerges-in-viral-video" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> that the air and water supplies in East Palestine are safe for residents.
Researchers from Texas A&amp;M University and Carnegie Mellon University nevertheless found that nine chemicals present on the train have higher <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/east-palestine-residents-could-see-long-term-health-risks-from-highly-toxic-chemicals-analysis-says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">concentrations</a> than normal in the town’s air and water supplies, posing the risk of long-term health complications to residents. Texas A&amp;M researcher Ivan Rusyn previously told The Daily Wire that environmental officials have not <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/researcher-worries-government-is-wrongly-declaring-safety-near-ohio-train-crash" target="_blank" rel="noopener">provided</a> “the full context into which the actual data collected by them could be placed,” particularly with respect to the long-term health risks posed by exposure to the chemicals.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan said that the cleanup from the derailment will take three months. The state of Ohio has also filed a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/entirely-avoidable-ohio-sues-norfolk-southern-for-train-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a> against Norfolk Southern in federal court in an attempt to hold the firm financially liable for the disaster.
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw testified before Congress earlier this month regarding the derailment but made no specific promises regarding the firm’s commitment to handle economic and health fallout into the future. Another train <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/another-norfolk-southern-train-derails-as-ceo-testifies-to-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener">controlled</a> by Norfolk Southern derailed in Alabama as Shaw delivered his testimony.
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Federal investigators have preliminarily <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-details-in-east-palestine-train-derailment-revealed-in-fresh-ntsb-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">concluded</a> that the derailment was caused by a malfunctioning rail axle. “Surveillance video from a residence showed what appears to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,” the National Transportation Safety Board said in a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/investigators-provide-more-details-on-what-caused-ohio-train-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. “The wheelset from the suspected railcar has been collected as evidence for metallurgical examination.”

Merrick Garland

DOJ, EPA Unveil Lawsuit Against Norfolk Southern Over East Palestine Train Crash

Biden Administration Reveals Lawsuit Against Norfolk Southern Over Ohio Train Crash

Department of Justice

Norfolk Southern

Ohio Train Disaster

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