The United States Environmental Protection Agency has launched a sweeping reorganisation, abolishing its Office of Research and Development and initiating over 3,700 job cuts.
This restructuring, justified by agency officials as a move to streamline operations and refocus on core programmes like air and water, coincides with government-wide efforts to reduce federal employment.
In its place, the EPA will establish a new Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions to “focus on research and science more than ever before.” The agency estimates these changes will yield savings close to $750 million.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin endorsed the changes, claiming the agency “is better equipped than ever to deliver on our core mission of protecting human health and the environment, while Powering the Great American Comeback.”
“This reduction in force will ensure we can better fulfil that mission while being responsible stewards of your hard-earned tax dollars,” he added.
The move has generated substantial criticism. Representative Zoe Lofgren branded the closure “a travesty.”
“The Trump administration is firing hardworking scientists while employing political appointees whose job it is to lie incessantly to Congress and to the American people. The obliteration of ORD will have generational impacts on Americans’ health and safety,” he stated.
Justin Chen, leader of the federal employees’ union, called the research office “the heart and brain of the EPA.”
“Without it, we don’t have the means to assess impacts upon human health and the environment. Its destruction will devastate public health in our country,” Chen added.
Although the EPA claims essential laboratory work will continue under the new structure, many scientists and advocacy groups fear the changes will weaken the agency’s ability to protect public and environmental health.