The workers who are supposed to lead the US response to the climate crisis are feeling 'burned out'

• There's a staffing crisis at the nation's top environmental agency, union officials say.
• They worry the shortage undercuts President Joe Biden's climate agenda. 
• The number of Environmental Protection Agency employees today is similar to the Ronald Reagan era.  

Workers at the nation's top environmental regulator say a staffing crisis is undercutting their ability to deliver on President Joe Biden's climate agenda.

The Environmental Protection Agency's largest employee union on Wednesday rallied with a few dozen workers in front of the EPA's headquarters in Washington, DC, to demand a major hiring increase and higher pay to attract top scientists, engineers, and other experts.