EPA administrator pledges to publicly release all agency material on geoengineering and contrails

The EPA administrator said the agency will publicly release all internal and external information it has compiled on contrails and solar geoengineering, promising "total transparency" and that the American public "deserves and expects honesty and transparency."

The administrator said they had "tasked my team at EPA to compile a list of everything we know about contrails and geoengineering for the purpose of releasing it to you now publicly," and described the planned release as comprehensive: "Everything we know about contrails to solar geoengineering will be in there."

The statement said the agency consulted its scientists and outside experts while preparing the materials. "We did the legwork, looked at the science, consulted agency experts, and pulled in relevant outside information to put these online resources together," the administrator said. The agency said the resources are meant to answer questions from people who have noticed streaks in the sky or read reports about governments or private groups exploring ways to alter incoming sunlight.

The administrator framed the move as a response to public concern and described possible risks: "The enthusiasm for experiments that would pump pollutants into the high atmosphere has set off alarm bells here at the Trump EPA," the administrator said, adding that EPA "shares many of the same concerns when it comes to potential threats to human health and the environment."

The statement contrasted the current approach with past practice, saying "Prior to now, EPA has never been this proactive to raise awareness about concerns with geoengineering and to stop this activity from being scaled up." The agency said it would make compiled materials available online; the administrator did not provide a date or timeline for publication.

The remarks closed with a pledge: "You can always trust this administration — and this EPA — to take your concerns seriously, answer your questions honestly, and carry out the will of voters with integrity," the administrator said.