Former President Donald Trump has been on the campaign trail, starting his rallies with one simple question: “Are you better off now than you were four years ago?”
Regardless of who they’re voting for on Nov. 5, this answer has been “no” for many Americans. One of the main reasons is economic fluctuations, like job scarcity, rising rent prices or high grocery costs.
However, while food prices are higher, their environmental regulations have decreased alarmingly. From Walmart’s arsenic-infused apple juice to the Boar’s Head listeria outbreak to an e.coli outbreak caused by onions in McDonald’s quarter pounders, it appears that the real-time ramifications of Trump administration Environmental Protection Agency repeals are upon the United States.
But the rollbacks did not just affect food. They also relaxed regulations regarding the environment around Americans.
The New York Times found that the Trump administration repealed over 100 environmental rules. The weakening of the National Environmental Policy fast-tracked the approval of public infrastructure projects, i.e., building roads. It allowed federal agencies to no longer be required to assess the project’s environmental effects. The administration also relaxed the process of reviewing these projects.
Then, in 2023, Florida lawmakers approved using phosphogypsum in road construction.
Phosphogypsum is a radioactive byproduct made after phosphate rock is turned into fertilizer. According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, there are 27 phosphate mines in Florida, with nine currently active. Most are in the central Florida area near Polk and Hillsborough counties. Phosphate itself is safe as it can be used for fertilizer, food preservatives, and animal feed supplements. Phosphogypsum, however, can cause various cancers and birth deformities.
According to a press release by Ragan Whitlock at the Center for Biological Diversity, the EPA requires that phosphogypsum is stored in “gypstacks” and cannot be used for road construction as it “presents an unacceptable risk to public health.”
A gypstack is almost like a small mountain of phosphogypsum stored and monitored on hundreds of acres.
Florida has about 25 of them.
“In 2020, under the Trump administration, the EPA reversed its own longstanding policy, approving the use of phosphogypsum in roads. Following a lawsuit and petition by the Center and other environmental, public health and union groups, in 2021 the agency withdrew its approval for use of phosphogypsum in roads,” the statement details.
Greg Allen, an NPR reporter, details the impact of these gypstacks.
“[In 2021], a holding pond next to stacks of phosphogypsum at a plant on Florida’s Gulf Coast began leaking, leading to the release of more than 200,000 gallons of contaminated water into the bay. And there have been other disasters. Hundreds of thousands of gallons of contaminated water spewed into Florida’s aquifer after a sinkhole opened up under a stack at another phosphate plant,” he said.
The legislation passed last year allows county commissioners and phosphate production companies, like the Mosaic company, to tackle this issue. The goal is to reduce the amount of gypstacks by using phosphogypsum as a base to build roads rather than what’s used currently, limestone rock. Because of the abundance of phosphogypsum in Florida, this could be a cheaper alternative and reduce the mountains.
But again, the high level of radioactivity caused by phosphogypsum is the main issue.
Earlier this month, the EPA approved a demonstration project that uses phosphogypsum as a road base. This project would happen in Polk County.
Critics of the plan warn that Florida’s climate is affecting the safety of the communities surrounding the construction.
According to the National Weather Service, when Hurricane Helene landed in Pinellas County and Tampa Bay, it brought a 15-foot surge and about six feet of water, respectively. Hurricane Milton brought tornadoes to Fort Pierce. According to climate research, these weather events are only getting stronger, and the damage they can cause can unearth the chemicals in the new roads.
While the EPA has allowed the pilot project to proceed, it has also opened the floor for “public comment on [the project’s] pending approval” through Nov. 8.
Their preferred method of communication is at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2024-0446.