Dennis Lettenmaier in US News and World Report: EPA Head Says Drinking Water a Larger Threat Than Climate Change

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said that drinking water, not climate change, is the largest global threat. Some experts disagree.

Dennis Lettenmaier, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles Geography Department, said he partially agrees with Wheeler’s statements on drinking water. Despite agreeing that contaminated drinking water is a “now” problem, Lettenmaier said it should not prevent work on climate change. The two issues go hand-in-hand, he said. Climate change “provides an additional stress on our ability to provide safe drinking water,” Lettenmaier said over email.