3 ways the EPA's rollback of environmental regulations could affect Americans' health if air pollution worsens

When the Environmental Protection Agency was formed in 1970, its mission was to protect the environment and human health. Since then, scientists, health experts and advocates have worked to implement regulations aimed at protecting and cleaning the air we breathe and the water we drink. Many of these regulations, which were aimed at cleaning up the air, also helped reduce carbon emissions, which can contribute to climate change – so it was a win for our bodies and the planet. 

But all this effort, experts say, might have been for naught, as this week the EPA – the department tasked with monitoring the nation's pollutants –  announced the rollback of a wide swath of environmental regulations, many of which could worsen air quality. And experts say that could have implications for health. 

More than 30 rules – including ones on emission standards for industrial air pollutants, passenger vehicles and coal-fired power plants – have been slashed.