At a Glance

EPA Chief Scott Pruitt told staff to archive important climate data from the agency's homepage. While the data has not been removed, it has been buried on the website, per Pruitt's orders.Among the data scrubbed is information on the Clean Power Plan, which is now being considered for repeal.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt personally directed staff to bury important climate data on the agency's website, new emails reveal.

Using theFreedom of Information Act, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) obtained and on what should be easily accessible to the public and what should be buried on the site.

The purge of the site began in April 2017. The emails indicate a rush to remove information on the Clean Power Plan, which is now being considered for repeal, as well as other climate-related information.

The move came as an ongoing public comment period began for the repeal ofthe plan that environmental advocates like the Environmental Defense Fund characterize as the "most significant action that the U.S. has ever taken to address climate change."

“The disappearance of these key web pages makes it harder for the public to access vital information about climate change and public health, including information about the Clean Power Plan,” said . “Obscuring information thwarts meaningful public participation in EPA’s work to protect Americans’ health and safety. It reinforces serious concerns that Pruitt has predetermined that he will repeal the Clean Power Plan, and that the current rulemaking process is a sham.”

The emails also reveal discussions among staff to take immediate measures to redirect URLs, per Pruitt's order.

The URL for theClean Power Plan,which directed users to information on the plan,now redirects them to afeaturing President Trump’s “Energy Independence” executive order.

As noted in the press release, Pruitt had direct input on many of the actions to purge the site of climate data.

In an early April email,Pruitt senior advisorLincoln Ferguson asked Pruitt's associate administrator for public affairs at the time, J.P. Freire, how long it would take the redirect to occur, noting that Pruitt wanted "it up ASAP."

“You can tell him we … are just finishing up," to which Ferguson responded:

“Can it happen today? ... Just asking because he is asking …”

Ferguson made it clear in the emailsthat all references to the Clean Power Plan be redirected to the webpage outlining Trump's executive order calling on a review of the plan. Other emails indicate a concerted effort to manipulate search results.

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The now-scrubbed pages, among them information in Spanish about climate change and the EPA's Student Guide to Global Climate Change and other material for children, are not gone from the site, just buried.Many of the science pages are no longer being updated, EDF notes.

"The removed webpages are still accessible through various EPA archives, but the archives are a poor substitute," EDF said. "They do not appear in a search of the EPA website. They are harder to find with certain search engines, including Google. And they are no longer being updated, which is especially problematic for cutting-edge pages like EPA’s overview of climate science."

Abanner at the top of all webpages tells users the EPA has "made some changes to. If the information you are looking for is not here, you may be able to find it on theor the."

Now, environmental advocates arefrom the final decision on the Clean Power Plan repeal, saying his comments and actions show a lack of transparency andindicatethat he has already decided to repeal the rulewithout regard for the public's opinion.

In the comments filed Monday, the 12 environmental groups that include the EDF, notedthat Pruitt has shown he "has a fixed position on the repeal of the rule, making his participation inconsistent with the Due Process Clause, which protects the public from rulemakings that are empty formalities because they are presided over by officials with an 'unalterably closed mind.'"

EPA spokesman Jahan Wilcox defended the actions and remindedthe public that information is still available on the agency's website.

“We are constantly updating our website to reflect new initiatives and projects of the agency,” he told weather.com. “Of course the site will be reflective of the current administration’s priorities — with that said, all the content from the previous administration is still easily accessible and publicly available through the banner across the top of our website:.”

Public remains open until April 26.