In the NewsAssociated PressJanuary 27, 2019

Trump rollbacks for fossil fuel industries carry steep cost

As the Trump administration rolls back environmental and safety rules for the energy sector, government projections show billions of dollars in savings reaped by companies will come at a steep cost: more premature deaths and illnesses from air pollution, a jump in climate-warming emissions and more severe derailments of trains carrying explosive fuels. The Associated Press analyzed 11 major rules targeted for repeal or relaxation under Trump, using the administration’s own estimates to tally how its actions would boost businesses and harm society. Lab co-director Michael Greenstone, who leads the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, said the Trump administration was downplaying the health and environmental impacts of its actions. “When you start fudging the numbers, it’s not that the costs just evaporate into thin air. We will pay,” Greenstone said.