For the 3 million Members and online activists of the Natural Resources Defense Council NRDC
People Power Triumphs in California
Major Milestone Marks Big Win for Flint
NRDC Fights to Defend Public Lands from Wholesale Assault
Court Battle Brews Over Forever Chemicals
Bighorn ram
Victory
CLIMATE DATA RESTORED
Facing a lawsuit filed by NRDC and our allies, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has committed to restore climate-focused webpages it had purged from its website in the wake of the incoming Trump administration. “Restoring these resources is a major victory for farmers, scientists, and communities who depend on climate information to make critical decisions,” says Rebecca Riley, managing director for Food & Agriculture at NRDC. “Farmers need access to science-based tools to make the best decisions in an era of increasing extreme and more unpredictable weather.”
COUNTRIES AIM FOR QUIET OCEAN
At the most recent United Nations Ocean Conference, 37 countries announced the launch of the first-ever high-level political initiative to tackle ocean noise pollution on a global scale. Led by Panama and Canada, with support provided by NRDC and other partners, the High Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean has laid out an ambitious roadmap to tackle a problem that is a significant and growing threat to marine life, interfering with the ability of whales and other animals to communicate, navigate, and find food. Victory
COURT TAKES L.A. PORT TO TASK
Siding with fed-up local communities, a California Superior Court judge has found that the Port of Los Angeles is once again breaking the law. The court found that the port has been violating its judgment last year that required the agency to comply with, and report on, air quality and other mitigation at the China Shipping Terminal. NRDC has been fighting alongside neighboring communities for more than 20 years to force the port the largest single source of air pollution in the region to clean up its act.
PEOPLE POWER TRIUMPHS IN CALIFORNIA
Turning tail in the face of overwhelming public opposition, the company behind a plan to build two industrial-scale woodpellet plants in California that would have sourced trees from eight of the state’s national forests has canceled the project. In announcing its decision, Golden State Natural Resources (GSNR) specifically cited the 50,000 comments it received in opposition to its plan—more than 37,000 of which were submitted by NRDC activists. Those voices bolstered the intense resistance of local communities who were opposed to the heavily polluting industrial facilities being built virtually in their backyards. “This is such a powerful example of how grassroots organizing and coalition building works—it really works!” says NRDC Forest Advocate Rita Vaughan Frost. “I have no doubt GSNR would still be steamrolling ahead with
The environmental campaigns and victories featured in Nature’s Voice are all made possible through your generous support.
You can help NRDC defend the environment by making a special contribution: NRDC.ORG/GIVE
its plan to ransack California forests to feed its ridiculous boondoggle were it not for the public backlash.”
Cloaked under the guise of promoting “forest resiliency” in the aftermath of California’s devastating wildfires, GSNR’s project would have instead unleashed a major expansion of the woodpellet biomass industry on the West Coast. Such greenwashing is on par for an industry that is built on a myth of providing “carbon-neutral renewable energy.” In fact, power plants that burn wood pellets emit more climate-warming carbon dioxide than coal-burning plants, and wood-pellet processing plants often saddle local communities with toxic air pollution and a ravaged forest landscape. To churn out up to a million tons of pellets a year for export to foreign markets, each of the proposed GSNR processing plants, in Tuolumne and Lassen
counties, would have sourced wood from a hundredmile radius, including forests that provide habitat for dozens of endangered or threatened species.
As welcome as GSNR’s decision is, the threat isn’t over. The company has signaled it may pivot from wood pellets to making wood chips. Says Vaughan Frost: “If they come back with another proposal that’s bad for our forests, bad for communities, and bad for our climate, our coalition is ready to fight again.”
NRDC Sues Over Trump Giveaway to Coal Plants
Nearly 70 coal-fired power plants that emailed their requests to ignore clean air standards at the invitation of EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin were granted exemptions by President Trump. NRDC and our coalition partners have filed suit to block those unlawful exemptions. Specifically, the plants were given a free pass to postpone complying with stronger standards on mercury, arsenic, and other toxic emissions as the administration attempts to roll back those protections, which were finalized last year.
Since first being adopted in 2012, the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards have cut mercury emissions by 90 percent, reduced other toxic metals by 80 percent,
and helped save up to 11,000 lives each year. Building on that success, the EPA strengthened the standards in 2024, after thousands of NRDC supporters and others submitted public comments. The agency’s own analysis found the tighter safeguards deliver $33 million in annual health benefits.
“The administration’s unlawful scheme attempts to bail out polluting industries and keep them on life support at the expense of keeping toxic air pollution out of our children’s lungs,” says NRDC Federal Clean Air Director John Walke. “This slapdash rubber-stampby-email process is outrageous, and we refuse to let it stand.”
SPECIAL REPORT
Stanislaus National Forest was among the eight targeted for tree harvest by the now-defeated project.
NRDC FIGHTS TO DEFEND PUBLIC LANDS FROM WHOLESALE ASSAULT
To the average American, it may not have seemed extraordinary. Long advocated by NRDC and finalized in April 2024, the Public Lands Rule effectively put conservation on par with extractive uses such as drilling, mining, or logging when it comes to how the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages more than 245 million acres of our public lands. But if countless Americans had come to see the preservation of old-growth forests, healthy watersheds, and wildlife habitat as no less important than handing those precious natural treasures over for corporate profit, the BLM had lagged in catching up to that view. Despite the fact that federal law requires the agency to manage our shared public lands according to a “multiple uses, sustained yield” framework, the reality was wildly unbalanced, with nearly 90 percent of the bureau’s acres open for oil and gas leasing—yet only 10 percent safeguarded from development. “We were thrilled,” says Bobby McEnaney, director of land conservation, who had led NRDC’s campaign to advocate for the rule. “It was an overdue recognition of something we’ve known for a long time, which is that land that isn’t being exploited by one extractive industry or another isn’t idle—it’s still working. It’s cleaning our air, filtering our drinking water, sequestering carbon; it’s serving wildlife and supporting natural ecosystems on which we all depend. And that doesn’t even touch on the social, cultural, and spiritual values of conservation. It was as if BLM had finally stepped into the 21st century.” What a difference a year makes.
Almost to the day that marked the anniversary of the adoption of the Public Lands Rule, the Interior Department under President Trump announced it was moving to repeal it, the same day it announced it was also planning to eliminate key protections
and open 13 million acres of unspoiled wildlife habitat in the Western Arctic to oil and gas development. Those protections, like the Public Lands Rule, had been championed by legions of NRDC Members and online activists during the previous administration. Not that the Interior Department’s rollbacks came as a surprise. Ever since Trump reiterated his vow to “drill, baby, drill” in his inauguration speech, his administration has embarked on the most aggressive and farreaching assault on our public lands in history. That assault is being led by Trump’s pick for Interior Secretary, former North Dakota governor and longtime fossil fuel ally Doug Burgum, who has referred to our public lands as assets on
“America’s balance sheet.” In his first day on the job, Burgum signed orders intended to “unlock America’s full potential for energy dominance and economic development”—principally by moving at breakneck speed to open up as much of our public lands as possible for drilling, mining, and logging. The day the Interior Department announced plans to fast-track fossil fuel and mining projects by slashing permitting timelines, overriding bedrock environmental protection laws, and hamstringing the ability of local communities to fight back—all under the guise of a “national energy emergency” declared by Trump—McEnaney shot back in the press: “This is them making stuff up. There is no basis in law for any of this. This administration
wants to let polluters drill or mine wherever they want, whenever they want—with zero oversight, no science, and no say from the public. It’s unwarranted, and we’ll fight it every step of the way.”
That goes as well for the administration’s attacks on our national forests, where the playbook is much the same: declare bogus “emergencies” that are then used to justify short-circuiting environmental safeguards in the rush to sacrifice more public lands for industry profit, in this case by seeking to supercharge commercial logging across our national forests. That includes 20 million acres
“These lands are our lands. And they’re not for sale.”
of designated critical habitat for threatened and endangered species, and nearly a quarter of all the mature and old-growth forests across the United States. The administration also recently announced plans to rescind the landmark Roadless Rule, which generally prohibits industrial logging and road construction across nearly 60 million acres of national forest. “This isn’t about national security or mitigating wildfire risks,” says Garett Rose, senior attorney with NRDC’s Forests Project. “This is about turning our federal forests into little more than tree farms for the logging industry.” NRDC’s all-out fight against this unprecedented assault extends beyond such direct attacks on our public lands to battling the administration’s campaign to gut the very agencies that oversee our natural treasures. Following the DOGE-driven “Valentine’s Day Massacre,” when approximately
[ Continued on next page. ]
Clockwise from top left: NRDC and our allies sued to block the mass firing of National Park Service and other federal employees; iconic caribou and other Arctic wildlife could be imperiled by the administration’s aggressive drilling agenda; that agenda aims to transform more of the Western Arctic into an industrial sacrifice zone; Alaska’s majestic Tongass National Forest is being targeted for commercial logging.
2,300 Interior Department employees, including nearly 1,000 from the National Park Service, were summarily terminated along with thousands more across federal agencies, NRDC joined a broad coalition in filing suit to challenge the administration’s illegal reorganization of the federal government. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of NRDC Members and online activists have rallied in opposition to the administration’s attacks at every turn, with more than 20,000 alone sounding off in protest of its move to kill the Public Lands Rule.
“If anyone doubted this administration’s penchant for oligarchy, look no further than how feverishly they’re working to give up as much of our public lands as they can to a handful of rich private interests,” says McEnaney, noting that polls show more than 70 percent of Americans—including an overwhelming majority of Trump voters—oppose selling existing public lands to the highest private bidder. “These lands are our lands. They’re our collective national inheritance, and they’re not for sale. Whether it’s through an avalanche of petitions or public comments or in federal court, that’s the message we’re going to be delivering to this administration over and over and over again.”
For alerts on the latest attacks on our public lands and to fight back in real time, join NRDC’s rapid-response Action Network.
nrdc.org/join-us
Major Milestone Marks Big Win for Flint
More than 10 years after lead-contaminated drinking water sparked a public health crisis in Flint, Michigan and eight years after outraged residents and local groups won a landmark settlement agreement the court-ordered lead-pipe replacement program is complete. In all, the city and state excavated more than 28,000 homes to check their service lines and replaced nearly 11,000 pipes. “Flint residents never gave up fighting for safe drinking water in the face of government indifference, mistruths, and incompetence,” says Melissa Mays of the local advocacy group Water You Fighting For. Mays was among the plaintiffs represented by
NRDC and the ACLU of Michigan, which filed the lawsuit that led to a federal district court in 2017 ordering Flint to give every resident the chance to have their lead pipes replaced at no cost, among other remediation efforts. It took six more trips to court over six years to hold the city to account for its slow progress and for its failures to restore lawns, sidewalks, and driveways in the process.
Flint residents’ fight prompted a national reckoning with environmental injustice and inequitable access to safe drinking water, and ultimately led to a new federal rule issued by the EPA under President Biden requiring every lead pipe across the country to be replaced in the next 10 years. NRDC is currently in court fighting to defend that rule from industry attacks.
Suit Challenges Illegal EV Funding Freeze
Nearly $1 billion in funds unlawfully frozen by the Trump administration to support the transition to cleaner vehicles have been restored, following a lawsuit filed by a coalition of states and joined by NRDC and our allies. A federal district court issued a preliminary injunction that unfroze the funds for 14 states that had been apportioned funding under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program, a $5 billion bipartisan program that seeks to build electric-vehicle charging stations every 50 miles on major highways across all 50 states. The transformative
program will deliver good jobs while ensuring that drivers from urban to rural areas, in every corner of the country have access to high-quality charging stations. Now NRDC and our coalition partners will seek to build on the early legal win in the fight to ensure all NEVI funds begin flowing again nationwide. “The administration’s halt in funding has thrown state efforts to build charging stations into turmoil, and it will mean workers and drivers suffer,” says Atid Kimelman, NRDC clean vehicles attorney. “The only winners from this illegal action are billionaire oil barons.”
Court Battle Brews Over Forever Chemicals
In an about-face that threatens the drinking water of millions of Americans, the EPA announced plans to scrap health standards for four toxic PFAS chemicals and to delay the implementation of standards for two more. Just last year, the agency finalized those same standards, prompting an immediate lawsuit from industry. NRDC and our coalition partners moved swiftly to defend the original rule in court, and we stand ready to aggressively challenge the EPA if it follows through with its illegal reversal. “As many as 105 million Americans are drinking water contaminated with these ‘forever chemicals’ at dangerous levels, and the EPA has known for decades that PFAS endanger human health,” says Erik D. Olson, senior strategic director of health at NRDC.
Long used in a variety of consumer and other products for their ability to withstand heat and repel water, PFAS are extremely persistent in the environment and can accumulate in people and animals. Exposure to the chemicals has been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, liver damage, and harm to the nervous and reproductive systems, among other health impacts. “The law is very clear,” says Olson. “The EPA can’t repeal or weaken the drinking water standard.”
The sustained advocacy of Flint residents made all the difference in their fight for justice.
“Power Your Community” Powers Up to Deliver Clean Energy Jobs
America’s clean energy revolution not only stands to combat the climate crisis and drive down harmful pollution, it has the potential to reinvigorate rural communities that have been hit hard by economic disinvestment. That’s the goal of Power Your Community, a new paradigm-shifting project launched as part of a groundbreaking partnership between NRDC and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW). “We saw that there was a lot of politically driven disinformation that was fueling local opposition to clean energy projects in rural areas the very places where most new solar and wind farms are being developed,” says Nathanael Greene, director of renewable energy policy at NRDC. “We wanted to find a way to counter that disinformation with the facts about the countless benefits these projects can deliver to local communities, and then to work with communities to make sure those projects are developed in a way that maximizes those benefits.”
That starts with delivering good-paying union jobs, which is what makes the partnership with IBEW one of the largest and most respected labor unions of its kind so important, says
Greene. On average, union workers earn 20 percent more than nonunion workers, and unions provide training and source workers locally, meaning that building these projects can offer workers in the community a pathway to a solid middle class career. Those stable, well-paying jobs have a ripple effect across the entire local economy, helping to support small businesses, boost local schools, and fund infrastructure improvements. As Greene points out, communities have often negotiated specific terms with the developers of renewable energy projects that have helped to develop things
like new community centers, libraries, and recreation facilities. The benefits don’t stop there, and some can be unexpected.
A third-generation farmer, for example, who says he was initially skeptical, found that by leasing 300 acres for a solar project, his family could keep their farm from being parceled off for subdivisions and strip malls. “There are a lot of headwinds at the federal level right now when it comes to clean energy,” says Greene. “Building support at the grassroots level among communities who, in reality, are poised to benefit the most from these projects is more important than ever.”
In Challenging Times, Flint Offers Hope
By Manish Bapna, President & CEO
For many, these are hard times. We’re watching decades of progress getting clawed back, and the rights of so many people nationwide being threatened. Some days it’s easy to feel powerless even as we fight back with everything we have. In those moments, the story of Flint, Michigan, is a shining beacon of hope (see related article, previous page). It is a reminder of the power that we the people of this country hold, and what’s possible when we stand up to powerful forces and refuse to back down.
Because amid the chaos, turmoil, and pain that the White House is sowing across the country, there is reason to celebrate in Flint.
After more than a decade of fighting in and out of courts, the battle to get rid of the city’s lead pipes is finally over. The victory was hard-fought. Time and again, residents’ concerns were dismissed, and promises made to them were broken. But the people of Flint persisted, united in a fight for the right to safe drinking water for their families and neighbors. It wasn’t about politics; it was about community. They worked together to stand up for what’s right and spoke truth to power. They took care of each other when the government failed them. And they stuck with it for years.
NRDC was with them every step
of the way, bringing our deep knowledge of the law and our powerhouse lawyers to represent community members. It was a magical combination of people power and the very best of NRDC that made this victory possible. Together, we changed Flint, and we changed America. Now, nearly every lead pipe in the city has been replaced, and a new federal rule requires every lead pipe nationwide to be replaced in the next decade.
The fight isn’t over. The White House hasn’t committed to honoring the new federal rule. But NRDC is ready to hold them accountable. And like the people of Flint we won’t give up.
