The EPA also proposed a separate rule that could prevent future administrations from regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants under the Clean Air Act
In a major reversal of US climate policy, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has repealed carbon pollution standards for fossil fuel-fired power plants.
The Trump administration said the move will cut more than $300 billion in industry costs and give utilities greater freedom to keep power plants operating.
EPA officials said companies can make decisions based on electricity costs, reliability and demand instead of being forced to close facilities or install costly emissions controls.
Nearly every climate rule from the Obama and Biden eras will be undone, including requirements that gas plants burn cleaner fuel and coal plants capture most emissions by 2039. The rollback takes effect shortly after official publication.
A wider rollback
The EPA also proposed a separate rule that could prevent future administrations from regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants under the Clean Air Act.
The proposal follows the agency’s decision earlier this year to revoke the scientific finding that has long supported federal regulation of climate pollution.
The rationale for repeal
Coal plants cited the high cost of the EPA’s carbon capture and storage mandate as a key reason for shutting down. The Sierra Club reports 330 retirements since 2010, with 60 additional plants set to close by 2031.
The effort to cut fossil fuel costs lines up with the tech industry’s data center buildout, which has already strained grids and driven up consumer energy prices.
Environmental groups criticized the rollback as dangerous, saying it risks higher pollution from fine particles, mercury and lead. Power plants are responsible for about a quarter of US climate pollution.
The new rules are expected to face immediate court challenges as the administration promotes greater fossil-fuel production.