WASHINGTON: A science advocacy group on Friday lambasted the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for firing five “whistleblowers” who signed a public letter critical of the Trump administration.
“The EPA fired five whistleblowers who signed the EPA Declaration of Dissent, and issued a Notice of Removal for an additional four employees,” according to a statement from Stand Up for Science, a non-profit organization created in response to US President Donald Trump’s cuts to federal research funding and other policies.
The EPA appeared to acknowledge the job losses in a statement on Friday, but did not specify if employees were fired.
“Following a thorough internal investigation, EPA supervisors made decisions on an individualized basis,” an agency spokesperson wrote to AFP, declining to comment on “individual personnel matters.”
Since taking charge of the federal agency tasked with ensuring clean air, land and water, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has executed Trump’s agenda, including gutting climate regulations, ramping up fossil fuel development and slashing funding for clean energy.
The changes have drawn fierce backlash from scientists and environmental advocates alike.
The EPA suspended more than a hundred employees in July after they signed the scathing open letter accusing Zeldin of pushing policies hazardous to both people and the planet.
The letter – signed by 270 employees with 170 choosing to be named – described a climate of political interference and warned that the agency’s leadership was eroding public health protections and scientific integrity.
On Friday, the EPA noted their “zero-tolerance policy for career officials using their agency position and title to unlawfully undermine, sabotage, and undercut the will of the American public that was clearly expressed at the ballot box last November.”
“The petition – signed by employees using a combination of their titles and offices – contains inaccurate information designed to mislead the public about agency business,” it added.
The Trump administration has similarly clamped down on federal employees who signed letters of dissent at other agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
US environmental agency fires five ‘whistleblowers’: non-profit
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US environmental agency fires five ‘whistleblowers’: non-profit
- The EPA appeared to acknowledge the job losses in a statement on Friday, but did not specify if employees were fired
- The EPA suspended more than a hundred employees in July after they signed the scathing open letter
US pays about $160m of the nearly $4 billion it owes the United Nations
- The UN has said the United States owes $2.196 billion to its regular budget
- Trump has said the United Nations has not lived up to its potential
UNITED NATIONS: The United States has paid about $160 million of the nearly $4 billion it owes the United Nations, the UN said Thursday.
The Trump administration’s payment is earmarked for the UN’s regular operating budget, UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told The Associated Press.
The UN has said the United States owes $2.196 billion to its regular budget, including $767 million for this year, and $1.8 billion for a separate budget for the far-flung UN peacekeeping operations.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last month that the world body faces “imminent financial collapse” unless its financial rules are overhauled or all 193 member nations pay their dues, a message clearly directed at the United States.
The disclosure of the payment came as President Donald Trump convened the first meeting of the Board of Peace, a new initiative many see as his attempt to rival the UN Security Council’s role in preventing and ending conflict around the world.
Trump has said the United Nations has not lived up to its potential. His administration did not pay anything to the United Nations in 2025, and it has withdrawn from UN organizations, including the World Health Organization and the cultural agency UNESCO, while pulling funding from dozens of others.
UN officials have said 95 percent of the arrears to the UN’s regular budget is from the United States.
