EPA Leadership Strip the Agency of Its Ability to Protect Us from Toxic Chemicals

Over the past 18 months, the Trump administration has aggressively undermined democratic institutions crucial for our safety, including systems that utilize the best scientific data for government decisions. This effort has led to over 560 attacks on science, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) being among the most affected agencies.

In March 2025, the EPA announced its intention to close the Office of Research and Development (ORD), a key center for independent scientific research. This closure marks a significant setback for independent science within the EPA. The ORD was specifically established as a separate entity outside of the EPA’s policy offices, such as the Office of Air and Radiation and the Office of Water, to prevent undue political influence on scientific research. Major environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act, mandate the EPA to base decisions on scientific evidence. The ORD was designed precisely to ensure that EPA decisions are guided by science rather than political or ideological pressures.

The EPA replaced the independent ORD with the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions (OASES), which operates under the Office of the Administrator. This change places scientific research under the direct oversight of political appointees. A recent memo to OASES staff indicates that political appointees must approve all new research projects.

The Trump administration’s persistent weakening of the EPA’s ability to regulate pollution, enforce laws, conduct scientific research, and protect public health has undeniably increased the risks Americans face from toxic chemicals.

IRIS, the small ORD program that saved lives

The Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) was a program within the ORD’s Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment. For years, IRIS scientists have analyzed and communicated the health risks related to chemical exposure, informing pollution regulations at federal, state, and local levels. According to the EPA, “The placement of the IRIS Program in ORD is intentional. It ensures that IRIS can develop impartial toxicity information independent of its use by EPA’s program and regional offices to set national standards and clean up hazardous sites.” IRIS’ assessments undergo rigorous review and are considered best practice for evaluating chemicals like formaldehyde and ethylene oxide for health impacts, including cancer.

The attack on IRIS is part of a longstanding strategy by the Trump administration. The chemical industry has long sought to dismantle the IRIS program by promoting misleading arguments to undermine its work. Project 2025, a policy guide for the Trump administration, supports ending IRIS, and Congress members have proposed legislation to prohibit the EPA from using IRIS’s 500+ assessments in rulemaking.

Before Trump took office, the EPA staunchly defended IRIS, supported by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), which have endorsed IRIS values. However, under Lee Zeldin’s leadership as Trump’s appointee, the EPA has drastically shifted its stance.

An internal memo obtained by ProPublica reveals that David Fotouhi, the EPA’s deputy administrator, has instructed all agency offices to reassess past decisions involving IRIS assessments and discouraged their future use.

Ethylene oxide, the cancer-causing gas EPA can’t seem to quit

In his memo, Fotouhi specifically highlighted ethylene oxide, a gas used in medical sterilization and chemical manufacturing, which IRIS classified as a carcinogen in 2016. During the Biden administration, the EPA took steps to enforce stricter regulations on facilities emitting ethylene oxide, including medical sterilizers. These measures aimed to significantly lower cancer risks for millions of people in the U.S. and Puerto Rico living or working near these facilities. However, with Trump back in office, the agency reversed its course and has rolled back many regulations that limit toxic emissions like ethylene oxide.

The 2016 IRIS assessment found that long-term exposure to ethylene oxide could result in white blood cell and breast cancers, with greater risks for children. The EPA strengthened controls on ethylene oxide emissions based on IRIS’ findings, which took ten years and extensive independent review to complete. Fotouhi—who previously represented polluters as an attorney—is now casting doubt on the IRIS assessment, echoing claims from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the American Chemistry Council. These claims contradict a 2025 NASEM committee’s findings supporting IRIS assessments. The EPA even removed information about ethylene oxide risks from its website, denying the public critical health information. This illustrates a deliberate move by the EPA to exclude science from its decisions, favoring deregulation for profit.

In its recent proposal to roll back ethylene oxide emission standards for medical sterilizers, which would expose many to high cancer risks, the EPA said it was inappropriate to use the 2016 IRIS value for setting standards and called for “alternative values.” The agency argues that two new studies introduce uncertainty to the 2016 IRIS value, though the studies do not compare the IRIS assessment’s health endpoints. One study even supports the 2016 value. Additionally, a draft cancer risk assessment from California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, including a decade-long literature review, aligns with the 2016 IRIS assessment. More details on the EPA’s unfounded claims about the 2016 IRIS assessment can be found in a comment I contributed to with Earthjustice, and our broader comments here. Despite clear science, the Trump administration remains unresponsive to it.

Where does this leave us? The EPA is allowing polluters to bypass regulations, discarding scientific findings crucial for regulating global warming emissions, neglecting the benefits of lives saved, and dismantling the scientific basis for effective rules. These actions undermine the EPA’s core mission. Under the Trump administration, the EPA is prioritizing profit over public health, with the burden of these decisions falling on the American people.