"The EPA still has unfinished business on a handful of major air rules, which environmentalists fear will endanger Americans’ health and worsen the climate crisis.
To the Trump administration, the changes are needed to get rid of burdensome requirements and spur economic growth, especially in the global race to build AI data center capacity.
“People get spooked when they hear of the possibility that a data center might come to their area,” Lee Zeldin, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, told reporters in June. “Big picture, I think a lot of Americans would agree that we should win this race against China to be the AI capital of the world.”
But Patricia McKenna, managing attorney for Earthjustice’s DC regional office, said competing doesn’t have to mean sacrificing clean air.
“No one is saying we don’t want companies to do well and manufacturing, but you can do it responsibly without putting people’s health at risk,” McKenna said."
Stephen Lee reports for Bloomberg Environment August 31, 2026.
