Happy Friday everyone!  In this edition of Climate Roots, we are super excited to bring you an exclusive interview with a sustainable fashion brand - definitely give it a listen for an inside look at the fashion industry and how we should be rethinking our clothing. Next up we have our monthly headlines, including a pretty cool electric plane company out of Vermont, and yet another terrible milestone we wish we didn't have to report on.  Rounding up this edition, we will be taking a momentary break from our environmental policy series to catch you up to speed on one of SCOTUS' most recent decisions on the EPA.  Thanks for reading!

Semi Aquatics Logo / Image courtesy of  Ayman Quadir

Featured Writer - Ayman Quadir

For this month’s issue, we are super excited to feature Ayman Quadir, founder of Semi Aquatics. Semi Aquatics is a sustainable fashion label that collaborates with artists to release limited runs of exceptionally high quality garments. The Streetwear startup has an ambitious aim to change the purpose of the sustainable fashion industry at its core. They say that the focus should no longer be on 'reducing' pollution, but on 'reversing' the impact of how fashion is manufactured.

Ayman first started working on Semi Aquatics as a senior at Middlebury College along with one of his friends. Born out of several of Ayman's passions, Semi Aquatics combines his interests in fashion, creativity and environment. A long time friend of ClimateRoots, we were lucky enough to sit down with Ayman for a short interview on a range of topics. We discussed everything from Semi Aquatics’ humble beginning to how to shop for sustainable fashion, from supply chain issues to designs. Be sure to give it a listen! Check out the full list of interview questions at the link below.

Interested in being a Featured Writer? Fill out this survey and let us know!

Weekly Headlines

Supreme Court Limits the EPA’s Power to Enforce Clean Air Standards (Boston Globe, Associated Press, Reuters)

• At the end of last month, the Supreme Court ruled that the EPA does not have the power to regulate emissions from existing power plants.

• This decision strikes down the Obama era Clean Power Plan, which would have allowed the agency to limit pollution from power plants.

• For more on the SCOTUS decision, check out our education section!

Carbon Dioxide Levels Reach New Peak (Associated Press, Axios, New York Times)

• For the first time since the Pliocene, over 4 million years ago, carbon dioxide levels reached 421 ppm.

• The last time carbon dioxide levels were this high, sea levels were 78 feet higher than they are today and forests grew in the arctic.

• This peak is 50% higher than the preindustrial levels, and is driven by fossil fuel combustion and pollution of greenhouse gasses.

UPS Buys Electric Cargo Planes (Washington Post, Seattle Times)

• The United Postal Service (UPS) has placed an order for 10 eVOTL aircraft, or electrical aircraft with the ability to take off and land like a helicopter but glide like an aircraft.

• Touted as the Tesla of the sky, these electric planes manufactured by Beta Technologies could make shipping both greener and faster.

• The planes would reduce road traffic and emissions, with a single charge distance of 250 miles and the ability to fully charge within an hour; all while having a 1,400 lb cargo capacity.

To read more headlines from this week, click below.

Sunset over Appalachian Gap, Vermont / Image Courtesy of Ryan Scerbo

West Virginia v. EPA

Hi everyone!

Happy summer– We hope you are enjoying the warm weather and taking care of yourself, wherever you are! 

We are taking a break from our chronological coverage of domestic environmental policy to cover the June 30th Supreme court case ruling of West Virginia vs. EPA. At a high level, the ruling “...narrowed the breadth of powers the Environmental Protection Agency has to regulate carbon emissions under the Clean Air Act” (Pita)... but what does this really mean?

Basically, the supreme court ruled that the EPA does not have the authority to limit the emissions created by existing power plants, which effectively eliminates that chance for the EPA to set renewable energy standards that could reduce emissions within the power sector (“What Does West Virginia v. EPA Mean for Climate Action?”). Though this ruling is coming now, the case of West Virginia vs. EPA has been going on for many years, and touches on an Obama era EPA regulation under section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act, known as the Clean Power Plan. The Clean Power Plan, “...required plants to reduce their carbon emissions or fund a shift to renewable energy” (Liptak). This process, known as ‘generational shifting’ was meant to reduce the emissions created by the power sector, one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gasses. 

Essentially, because the Clean Power Plan was never properly implemented due to judicial holdings, and then being repealed under the Trump administration in 2019, the West Virginia vs. EPA ruling was the final opportunity for the Clean Power Plan to take shape. However the supreme court ruled that the EPA did not actually have enough authority under section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act, and therefore did not have the right to set emission standards for power plants (“EPA’s Clean Power Plan Struck Down by SCOTUS”). 

However, though a significant loss, the ruling does not eliminate the EPAs authority altogether. The setback is significant for implementing generational shifting within the power sector and setting emission standards for existing power plants, but does not place a limit on the EPAs power to regulate emissions for future plants, which it can do under section 111(b) of the Clean Air Act (“What Does West Virginia v. EPA Mean for Climate Action?”). Additionally, the EPA does still have authority over conventional air pollutants related to public health, and is still able to “tackle air pollution and climate change” (“What Does West Virginia v. EPA Mean for Climate Action?”). 

All told, the court ruling does not technically change what the EPA can enforce. The agency will still have the ability to regulate air pollutants. However, emissions from power plants are NOT considered conventional air pollutants. The Clean Power Plan was aimed at changing this to help the EPA limit some of the most potent greenhouse gasses at the source. Unless a different legal framework is figured out that does not involve section 111(d), then the EPA will never have the power to fight greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants.

See you next month when we will (barring any other major court rulings) continue our coverage of domestic environmental policy.

To read this full piece with works cited, check it out on our blog!

Sunset over Boston  / Image Courtesy of Nick Moore  

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