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It’s not about transparency: politics is intruding into USEPA science and it could cost the public’s health

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 30, pages 594–595 (2020)Cite this article

Uncertainty is key to science. As scientists, we are drawn to the edge of our knowledge and we seek to fill the gaps with new scientific understanding. But such gaps are vulnerable to interference from those who wish to capitalize on uncertainty for political gain. Right now, efforts are underway at the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to exploit uncertainty surrounding the health risk estimates at low pollution levels by mandating consideration of risk models that lack sufficient evidence. And public health may pay the price.

In March 2020, the USEPA released a Supplemental Notice on its draft rule Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science, first proposed in April 2018. The Supplemental Notice makes clear that the proposal, ostensibly about transparency, will restrict the science that EPA can use in decision-making. Specifically, we would like to draw attention to ways the proposal threatens the EPA’s ability to follow science-based models to accurately assess risks from harmful pollutants.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health Science, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA

    Richard E. Peltier

  2. Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Gretchen T. Goldman

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  1. Richard E. Peltier
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  2. Gretchen T. Goldman
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Correspondence to Richard E. Peltier.

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Peltier, R.E., Goldman, G.T. It’s not about transparency: politics is intruding into USEPA science and it could cost the public’s health. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 30, 594–595 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-020-0229-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-020-0229-z

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