Next Stop: Suncor

A Few Tips For The Next Time The EPA Comes To Town

This opinion piece was originally published in The Greater Park Hill News, where the author is a monthly columnist. Previous columns can be found here:

http://greaterparkhill.org/?s=tracey+macdermott

Last month, Colorado received some high-level attention from two Trump Administration officials: Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zeldin and Energy Secretary Chris Wright both made stops in our state.

Wright, the former CEO of the Denver-based fracking company Liberty Energy, has self-proclaimed that he is a lifelong environmentalist. He has acknowledged that climate change is a problem, but also recently said:“ the biggest barrier to energy development … is calling climate change a crisis.”

Here’s another example of Wright talking out of both sides of his mouth: During his confirmation hearings he said, “I am for improving all energy technologies that can better human lives and reduce emissions.” Then in February, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), he lamented the previous administration’s environmental efforts, supporting Trumps goal to “Drill, baby drill.”

Sadly, burning more oil and gas will not help lower emissions.

The EPA, borne of the concern over polluted air, litter, and contaminated water and a desire to protect human health and the environment, is now, under Trump, rolling back climate and pollution regulations.

You may be wondering, how will the agency now keep its duty to protect us? Or secure a livable planet?

Should Mr. Zeldin’s first Colorado stop have been to Commerce City, home to Suncor? The petroleum refinery has been sued repeatedly for Clean Air Act violations, which gives the EPA the ability to hold industry accountable to the communities it pollutes. As reported by multiple news agencies, when asked about whether he would hold Suncor accountable, Zeldin said he was unaware of any specific problems.

Commerce City, about five miles north of Park Hill, was an agricultural community until 1920, when industry moved in, including eventually the oil refinery.

Now, Commerce City, along with the north Denver neighborhoods of Globeville and Elyria/Swansea have markedly higher pollution levels than any other area of Colorado. The residents of these neighborhoods are also low-income and largely communities of color. They experience and suffer from disproportionately higher levels of respiratory problems and other health conditions. As most people know, there is a term for this: environmental racism.

A few years ago, a study of 10,000 children found that early exposure to pollutants can lead to known or suspected harm to the central nervous system. The authors of the study, which was published in the journal Science Advances, highlighted that children from  poor  neighborhoods  are  disproportionately impacted. Further, the study noted that exposure during infancy reduced cognitive ability.

Multiple scientists agree that air pollution impacts the brains of our kids. As noted in the Journal of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences and elsewhere, long-term exposure to air pollution impedes cognitive performance in verbal and math tests.

Now consider this: Students in Adams 14 School District, which is in Commerce City, often score low on state-mandated tests. The district has asked for the state to reconsider its overall rating based on the knowledge that pollution impacts learning ability. Should the federal Department of Education, which is charged with prohibiting discrimination and ensuring equal access to education, intervene? Is now really a good time to dismantle the department, or even slash its programs?

I would argue that the children of Commerce City deserve to have federal agencies tasked with making sure that we all have clean air to breathe, access to clean (renewable) energy and a future that is fair and equitable.

Maybe we should spend less time focusing on student test scores, and instead address the environmental racism to which our neighbors in Commerce City are subjected.

I would also offer that next time Director Zeldin and Secretary Wright drop by Colorado, they visit the Suncor plant, then drop in for a chat with students attending the schools nearby. It may well be an important learning experience for them.

Tracey MacDermott is an at-large board member of Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. She was trained as a Climate Reality Leader in 2017. She chairs the Sustainability Committee for the Business and Professional Women of Colorado and the National Federation for Business and Professional Women. Email her at

traceymacdermott@gmail.com

Tracey MacDermott
NFBPWC Environment and Sustainable Development Committee Chair
2024-2026