EPA sends staffers talking points, downplays human-caused climate change
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent employees a list of eight approved talking points on climate change from its Office of Public Affairs, according to the Huffington Post.
The staffers received a list of talking points on Tuesday evening instructing them to emphasize the uncertainties about the role of human activity in climate change.
The list also offers suggestions on ways to talk with local communities about how to adapt to climate impacts, such as extreme weather, rising seas and other environmental threats.
In this June 1, 2017, President Donald Trump shakes hands with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt after speaking about the U.S. role in the Paris climate change accord in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
The memo reflects many of the statements that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt has previously made about the current state of climate research.
“Human activity impacts our changing climate in some manner,” one point reads. “The ability to measure with precision the degree and extent of that impact, and what to do about it, are subject to continuing debate and dialogue.”
Another states: “While there has been extensive research and a host of published reports on climate change, clear gaps remain including our understanding of the role of human activity and what we can do about it.”
The list echoes pronouncements by Pruitt and other Trump administration officials, who have repeatedly highlighted uncertainty about the role humans have played in climate change.
Pruitt's opinions on climate change widely differ from both foreign leaders as well as the vast majority of climate scientists internationally.
The EPA confirmed the talking points in a statement to the Huffington Post on Wednesday. In that statement, the EPA said the agency’s “work on climate adaptation continues under the leadership of Dr. Scheraga.”
“This is not an official memo; this is simply an email among colleagues, based on information developed by someone in our office,” Liz Bowman, an EPA spokeswoman, said to the Huffington Post. “Implying we are telling people to downplay climate change is a gross over misrepresentation of the facts.”
Later on Wednesday evening, the League of Conservation Voters cast light on the EPA location in Washington, D.C, as part of the new Boot Pruitt campaign.
The new Boot Pruitt campaign was started this week by a group of environmental advocacy groups, including the Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters, Natural Resources Defense Council and other groups. The campaign was launched to push Pruitt out of office, according to ABC News.
Light is projected by the League of Conservation Voters as part of the new Boot Pruitt campaign onto the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, the location of the Environmental Protection Agency, Wednesday, March 28, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
