White House Removes 6,000 Energy Conservation Pages Amid Historic Heatwave]

The US Department of Energy reportedly deleted approximately 6,000 web pages related to energy conservation as a historic heatwave grips much of the country.

The timing of the removals following Republican criticism of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s request for residents to set air conditioners to 78 degrees has raised questions. GOP figures including Ted Cruz, Nikki Haley, and Representative Nancy Mace condemned the guidance as socialist overreach, with some targeting women’s health concerns.

This recommendation aligns with longstanding Department of Energy guidance advising Americans to maintain thermostat settings between 75 and 78 degrees during summer months. Similar advice has been issued by Republican governors in states like Texas, including current Governor Greg Abbott.

The Trump administration’s deletions encompass a broad range of content, eliminating not only materials supporting lower thermostat recommendations but also resources on water conservation, insulation methods, and the Solar Decathlon challenge. The Internet Archive has preserved copies of the removed pages.

New York City recorded temperatures exceeding 95 degrees for four consecutive days, including multiple readings above 100 degrees. Such extreme heat places considerable stress on electrical infrastructure, particularly when residential demand increases during holiday weekends. Maintaining higher thermostat settings can help prevent power outages that would disable air conditioning units when cooling is critically needed.

According to CDC and NOAA data, extreme heat causes more American fatalities annually than floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes combined.

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