EPA Head Pruitt Tours Indiana Hazardous Waste Site

Amid proposed budget cuts from the Trump administration, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Scott Pruitt visited his first hazardous waste site in East Chicago, Ind., this week, where he toured a housing complex built on the superfund site where approximately 1,000 residents had to leave their homes due to lead contamination.

Pruitt’s visit to the site came a day after the EPA denied a report that it was considering closing its Chicago office, which oversees a variety of regional environmental protection efforts. During his site visit, Pruitt didn’t address the report of the possible office closure or how budget cuts would impact the EPA’s operations.

But, according to recent reports, the proposed federal budget would reduce the EPA’s discretionary budget from $8.2 billion in fiscal year 2017 to $5.7 billion in fiscal year 2018 and cut approximately 3,200 positions, about 20 percent of the agency's staff.

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