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ARTICLE · 24 DECEMBER 2025

Environmental AI In 2025: Adoption Accelerated, But Policy Still Lagging Behind

Bergeson & Campbell
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As 2025 draws to a close, one of the most consequential, but least publicly discussed, shifts in federal environmental governance has been the quiet expansion of artificial intelligence (AI)...

United StatesTechnology
James V. Aidala
James V. Aidala
L. Claire Hansen
L. Claire Hansen
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As 2025 draws to a close, one of the most consequential, but least publicly discussed, shifts in federal environmental governance has been the quiet expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) behind the scenes across multiple federal agencies. AI tools are not new in federal science programs, but 2025 marked a turning point: agencies began integrating machine-learning models into routine workflows in exposure modeling, surveillance, enforcement targeting, and environmental monitoring. The White House's January 23, 2025, Executive Order (EO), "Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence," was among the very first 2025 EOs signed by President Trump. The year was bookended by another. On Thursday December 11, 2025, President Trump issued the Executive Order, "Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence," which seeks to curb state level regulation of AI by asserting federal preemption, directing agencies to challenge or deter

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