Union of Concerned Scientists’ Post

Transportation experts have a key role in advancing climate and equity. Join UCS and USDOT Policy Advisor Liya Rechtman for a webinar to leverage your expertise to shape a clean, just, multimodal transportation future. Thursday, July 25, 12pm ET. Register: https://lnkd.in/eh2ntAZ6

More than 700 scientists and experts are calling on President Biden and Congress to cancel the Sentinel program and retire the US land-based missile force. Doing so would save Americans more than $100 billion and make the world safer as these missiles put a target on communities out West. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eQ5GNMVs

The Supreme Court "is not making esoteric rulings that don’t matter to most people. They are taking a chainsaw to our system of health, safety, and environmental protections." Read Andrew Rosenberg's post on the recent Chevron Deference decision. #scotus #ScienceBasedDecisionmaking

As climate litigation continues to evolve, the need for robust communication and collaboration between scientists and legal practitioners becomes increasingly important. Ensuring that legal strategies are informed by the latest scientific evidence is essential for achieving successful outcomes in court and driving meaningful climate action.

Pollution from fossil fuels is deadly. Fossil fuels not only bear the largest share of responsibility for global warming pollution, but bear a huge part of the responsibility for local pollution from their long supply chain and from the combustion of its products, with impacts on air, water, soil, ecosystems, and of course, people. It is possible for the US to phase out fossil fuels in the entire economy in a cost-effective way.

Having seamless access to participate in our democratic system can improve health outcomes just as much as going to the doctor. Enhancing public participation would mean that people most impacted by a decision could have greater influence on outcomes.

The elimination of Chevron deference significantly impacts the ability of federal agencies to enforce regulations—particularly those related to environmental protection and climate change, as many of these regulations were crafted to be flexible in interpretation by design. By reducing the power of federal agencies to interpret and implement ambiguous statutes, the ruling complicates the path forward for robust environmental action.

📢NEW: A UCS analysis shows that nearly 3 million people living along US coastlines can expect some of the critical infrastructure in their communities – from schools and fire stations to power and wastewater treatment plants -- to flood twice or more per year between by 2050. Over half of at-risk infrastructure serves communities bearing the burdens of historical and ongoing racism, discrimination, and pollution.

The pace and magnitude of the physical risks from climate change in all too many places is outpacing the ability of insurance to provide protection. The nation must scale up resources for climate resilience and ensure they are reaching communities in a just and equitable way.