Trump administration plans to end greenhouse gas limits on power plants
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Trump administration plans to end greenhouse gas limits on power plants
The EPA is drafting a plan to end limits on greenhouse gases from power plants. The new plan would build on a 2022 Supreme Court decision that upended President Joe Biden’s ambitious climate agenda. The plan would overturn rules unveiled in the final year of the Biden administration that sought to limit planet-warming emissions from U.S. power plants, which conservatives argue contravened the 2022 ruling. Climate experts slammed the draft plan Saturday, noting that such a proposal would prevent the country from averting catastrophic climate change. The New York Times first reported the details of the proposed plan, which was sent to the White House for review May 2, according to the newspaper. The EPA said eliminating those emissions would have no meaningful effect on public health and welfare, the Times reported. The Sierra Club accused EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin of trying to further fossil-fuel industry interests after it contributed tens of millions of dollars toward the presidential campaign. The White House said the new rule will be published after an interagency review.
“In reconsidering the Biden-Harris rule that ran afoul of Supreme Court case law, we are seeking to ensure that the agency follows the rule of law while providing all Americans with access to reliable and affordable energy,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement.
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In their unsigned email Saturday, the EPA spokesperson argued that the Biden-era rule would have “shut down affordable and reliable electricity generation,” raised prices and increased U.S. reliance on energy imports from overseas. The new rule will be published after an interagency review, the EPA spokesperson wrote.
The New York Times first reported the details of the EPA’s proposed plan, which was sent to the White House for review May 2, according to the newspaper.
In its draft, the agency argued that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from power plants that burn fossil fuels “do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution” or climate change because they are a small and declining share of global emissions, the Times reported. Power plants were responsible for roughly 25 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2022. The agency also said eliminating those emissions would have no meaningful effect on public health and welfare, the Times reported.
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The EPA’s draft plan is the latest salvo in the Trump administration’s attack on federal climate efforts. In March, the EPA announced that it would begin dismantling dozens of Biden’s most ambitious climate and environmental regulations, including rules aimed at accelerating the nation’s transition to electric vehicles, eliminating planet-warming emissions from power plants and protecting waterways from harmful pollution.
Zeldin has also privately urged the White House to strike down the 2009 “endangerment finding” that cleared the way for regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, The Post previously reported.
Despite ruling against the EPA’s proposed standards in 2022, the Supreme Court declined in October to pause Biden’s revised plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions from power plants while Republican-led states and utilities sued to block the regulations. The conservative groups argued that the Biden-era plan would prematurely close some plants and hurt the power grid; Biden officials said the plan was designed to avoid those concerns.
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The news of a draft plan that would eliminate limits on greenhouse gases emitted from power plants was welcomed by conservatives Saturday.
Myron Ebell, who led the EPA transition team during Trump’s first term, called the regulatory policies “pointless” and “damaging” to the economy.
“President Trump learned a lot from his first term; he is moving much more quickly and boldly to undo the regulatory morass created by past administrations,” Ebell told The Post.
Thomas Pyle, president of the American Energy Alliance, an advocacy group for the oil and gas sector, called the draft a “good step forward in line with the rule of law.”
“It’s critically important that EPA does the tough legal work of ensuring their new rule passes legal muster,” he said.
But climate experts slammed the draft plan Saturday, noting that such a proposal would prevent the country — which is the world’s second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases — from averting catastrophic climate change.
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Patrick Drupp, director of climate policy at the Sierra Club, accused Zeldin of trying to further the interests of the fossil-fuel industry after it contributed tens of millions of dollars toward Trump’s presidential campaign.
“It’s completely reprehensible that Lee Zeldin wants to roll back these lifesaving rules and do more harm to the American people just to curry favor and earn some brownie points with the fossil-fuel industry,” Drupp said.
Julie McNamara, an associate policy director with the climate and energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said there is no “meaningful path” to reducing greenhouse gas emissions without such federal limits.
EPA Moving to Axe Emissions Limits From Coal- and Gas-Fired Power Plants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed it is drafting a plan to eliminate all limits on greenhouse gases (GHG) from coal- and natural gas-fired power plants. The EPA said eliminating those emissions would not have a meaningful effect on public health. The New York Times first reported on the EPA’s draft plan, with the newspaper saying it had reviewed internal agency documents. The agency in the proposed regulation said carbon dioxide and other GHG from power plants “do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution” or to climate change. The news comes one day after President Trump signed four executive orders supporting a faster buildout of nuclear power plants in the U.s. The president on Jan. 20, the first day of his second term, declared an “energy emergency”, writing “The energy and critical minerals [“energy”] identification, leasing, development, production, transportation, refining, and generation capacity of the United States are all far too inadequate to meet our Nation’s needs.”
A spokesperson for the EPA told Reuters news service: “Many have voiced concerns that the last administration’s replacement for that rule is similarly overreaching and an attempt to shut down affordable and reliable electricity generation in the United States, raising prices for American families, and increasing the country’s reliance on foreign forms of energy. As part of this reconsideration, EPA is developing a proposed rule.”
President Biden had said his administration wanted to decarbonize the U.S. power generation sector by 2035. The U.S. Energy Information Administration has said about 43% of U.S. electricity comes from natural gas-fired power plants, with about 16% from coal-fired facilities.
The New York Times first reported on the EPA’s draft plan, with the newspaper saying it had reviewed internal agency documents. The agency in the proposed regulation said carbon dioxide and other GHG from U.S. power plants “do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution” or to climate change, adding that emissions from U.S. power generation are a small share of global GHG output. The EPA said eliminating those emissions would not have a meaningful effect on public health.
Lee Zeldin, who heads the EPA, in a statement said, “We are seeking to ensure that the agency follows the rule of law while providing all Americans with access to reliable and affordable energy.”
Draft Rule Under Review
The Times on Saturday reported that the EPA sent the draft rule to the White House for review on May 2. The paper noted the proposal could be changed before being made available publicly, which it said could occur in June.
The EPA in its draft of the plan wrote that the U.S. share of emissions is just 3% of global pollution from the power generation sector. The agency also noted the U.S. has reduced its share of global emissions in the past 20 years, writing that the U.S. was responsible for 5.5% of global emissions in 2005. The U.S., though, is responsible for the second-most emissions from power generation worldwide, behind only China.
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Saturday’s news comes one day after President Trump signed four executive orders supporting a faster buildout of nuclear power plants in the U.S. Those orders including a directive for the departments of Energy and Defense to look at putting reactors at military bases. The orders also noted deployment on federal lands, and also siting them near data centers. The directives also looked at ways reactors could be deployed without approval of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The administration also set a goal of increasing U.S. nuclear power generation capacity to 400 GW by 2050, a fourfold jump from the current capacity of about 100 GW that comes from just more than 90 operating reactors.
Trump’s Support for Fossil Fuels
The proposed emissions rule aligns with the Trump administration’s efforts to prop up the use of fossil fuels for power generation in the U.S. The president on Jan. 20, the first day of his second term, declared an “energy emergency”, writing “The energy and critical minerals [“energy”] identification, leasing, development, production, transportation, refining, and generation capacity of the United States are all far too inadequate to meet our Nation’s needs. We need a reliable, diversified, and affordable supply of energy to drive our Nation’s manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, and defense industries, and to sustain the basics of modern life and military preparedness.”
The Trump administration has issued several orders related to ending federal spending related to programs that would combat climate change. The administration also has repeatedly said it would remove rules, such as emissions limits, that would hinder thermal power generation, oil and gas exploration, and mining operations.
Republicans in the U.S. House on Thursday in a party-line vote advanced Trump’s tax and spending bill that calls for ending subsidies and tax credits for renewable energy. The bill aims to eliminate funding including tax credits and grants, from the Inflation Reduction Act that support solar, wind, and other renewable energy, along with programs designed to reduce GHG from the power generation and transportation sectors.
An example of the administration’s actions to support coal-fired power generation occurred Friday, when Energy Secretary Chris Wright invoked authority usually reserved for wartime, or periods of power demand-related emergencies, to order Michigan-based Consumers Energy to keep the utility’s 1,560-MW J.H. Campbell coal plant on the shores of Lake Michigan open. Consumers Energy had planned to close the plant at the end of May. Wright’s directive wants the coal-fired facility to “remain available for operation” at least through this summer.
Wright in a statement said, “Today’s emergency order ensures that Michiganders and the greater Midwest region do not lose critical power generation capability as summer begins and electricity demand regularly reach high levels.” The order, issued under the Federal Power Act, lasts 90 days, or until Aug. 21. Michigan utility regulators on Friday said the federal order is “unnecessary,” and said there is no power emergency in the state or the Midwest region.
Katie Carey, a spokesperson for Consumers Energy, in a statement said, “Consumers Energy plans to comply with the 90-day pause from the Department of Energy. We are reviewing the executive action and the overall impact on our company.”
—Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER.
EPA plan to roll back power plant emissions limits could upend Alaska’s carbon credit plans
Draft plan from the Environmental Protection Agency would eliminate federal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from coal- and gas-fired power plants. If enacted, if enacted, could have far-reaching consequences for the burgeoning carbon credit market, which relies heavily on emissions limits to drive demand for offsets. The topic is sure to come up during Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s Sustainable Energy Conference in Anchorage in June, when the head of the EPA Lee Zeldin, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are scheduled to attend. A federal rollback of emissions limits could weaken demand for carbon storage services, as power plants would face no federal mandate to reduce CO2 emissions. The move may also shift the center of gravity for carbon market activity from the federal level to states like California and Washington, which maintain their own cap-and-trade systems.
According to reporting by The New York Times, a copy of the draft proposal was sent to the White House on May 2 and may be released for public comment in June.
The document marks a reversal in regulatory approach from prior Biden-era EPA actions, including a 2024 rule that imposed new emissions restrictions on coal-fired plants.
The draft reportedly says carbon dioxide emissions from US power plants do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution or climate change, citing the declining share of global emissions represented by the US power sector. Eliminating these emissions would not produce a measurable improvement in public health or welfare.
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has been developing a regulatory framework for carbon management, focusing on carbon capture, utilization, and storage and carbon offset projects.
In 2023, Gov. Mike Dunleavy proposed carbon management and monetization legislation to enable the Department of Natural Resources to regulate carbon offset and sequestration projects on state lands. These legislation allows private companies to lease state lands for carbon offsets (keeping lands undeveloped) or store CO2 underground for permanent sequestration or enhanced oil recovery, particularly in the Cook Inlet basin, estimated to have a 50-gigaton CO2 storage capacity. The target for this monetization is Asia, with countries like Japan looking to buy carbon storage to meet international climate goals set by globalists.
Alaska also submitted a climate action plan (renamed Sustainable Energy Action Plan) to the EPA in 2024 under the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, focusing on renewable energy expansion and energy efficiency (e.g., heat pumps, home weatherization, and hydroelectric projects like Bradley Lake). The plan avoids direct regulation of oil and gas emissions but emphasizes reducing emissions from energy use.
The Trump Administration policy shift, if enacted, could have far-reaching consequences for the burgeoning carbon credit market, which relies heavily on emissions limits to drive demand for offsets. Such credits are typically purchased by companies seeking to comply with emissions regulations or to voluntarily meet environmental, social, and governance (ESG) targets.
By removing the regulatory cap on emissions from major polluters, the EPA could reduce the pressure on utilities and industrial firms to purchase offsets, dampening demand in both compliance and voluntary markets.
The move may also shift the center of gravity for carbon market activity from the federal level to states like California and Washington, which maintain their own cap-and-trade systems. These programs could gain new prominence as firms seek alternative venues for regulatory certainty and emissions accountability.
The new EPA direction is almost certain to bring lawsuits and fierce opposition from environmental groups and Democrat lawmakers, many of whom championed the 2024 EPA rules.
At that time, the EPA projected that its regulations would prevent up to 1,200 premature deaths annually and reduce thousands of cases of asthma and hospitalizations related to air pollution. Now, the EPA says there is no data to support that claim.
Power plant operators, many of which have already made major investments in emissions reductions and carbon trading strategies, may find themselves caught between diverging state and federal priorities.
Alaska’s carbon sequestration framework relies on market-driven demand for carbon storage. A federal rollback of emissions limits could weaken demand for carbon storage services, as power plants (especially coal- and gas-fired) would face no federal mandate to reduce CO2 emissions.
This could reduce revenue potential for Alaska’s carbon storage projects, undermining the economic viability of the DNR’s leasing program.
Before the new EPA rule can take place, it must go through public comment period and could be revised. The topic is sure to come up during Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s Sustainable Energy Conference in Anchorage in June, when the head of the EPA Lee Zeldin, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are scheduled to attend.
US EPA drafting plan to erase greenhouse gas limits on coal and gas-fired power plants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is drafting a plan to eliminate all limits on greenhouse gases from coal and gas-fired power plants. “Many have voiced concerns that the last administration’s replacement for that rule is similarly overreaching,” an EPA spokesperson said. The draft plan was first reported by the New York Times. President Donald Trump has moved quickly to remove all federal spending related to efforts to combat climate change and to eliminate any regulation aimed at addressing greenhouse gas emissions as part of its effort to bolster oil, gas and mining operations. “We continue to build on that progress now,” said EPA administrator Lee Zeldin.
Companies The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Follow
WASHINGTON, May 24 (Reuters) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed on Saturday that it was drafting a plan to eliminate all limits on greenhouse gases from coal and gas-fired power plants in the United States and would be published after interagency review.
“Many have voiced concerns that the last administration’s replacement for that rule is similarly overreaching and an attempt to shut down affordable and reliable electricity generation in the United States, raising prices for American families, and increasing the country’s reliance on foreign forms of energy,” a spokesperson for the agency said. “As part of this reconsideration, EPA is developing a proposed rule.”
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The draft plan was first reported by the New York Times, which said the EPA argued in its proposed regulation that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from power plants that burn fossil fuels “do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution” or to climate change because they are a small and declining share of global emissions.
The EPA also said that eliminating those emissions would have no meaningful effect on public health and welfare, the report added.
According to the United Nations, fossil fuels are by far the largest contributors to global warming, accounting for more than 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90% of carbon dioxide emissions.
The U.S. government under President Donald Trump has moved quickly to remove all federal spending related to efforts to combat climate change and to eliminate any regulation aimed at addressing greenhouse gas emissions as part of its effort to bolster oil, gas and mining operations.
On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives advanced Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill , which may end numerous green-energy subsidies that have supported the renewable energy sector.
Trump’s budget package – which he calls “one big beautiful bill” – would eliminate funding established under former U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration through the Inflation Reduction Act and repeal grants intended to reduce air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions or purchase electric heavy-duty vehicles.
Trump in his first term promised to repeal regulations focused on reducing carbon pollution from power plants.
“We continue to build on that progress now,” said EPA administrator Lee Zeldin.
Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru and Lucia Mutikani in Washington; Editing by Sharon Singleton and Diane Craft
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US wants to end greenhouse gas limits on power plants — New York Times
The draft was sent to the White House for review on May 2. The proposal would be published after an inter-agency review. The US is the world’s second-largest polluter, accounting for about 11% of total greenhouse gas emissions in 2023.
The draft was sent to the White House for review on May 2 and could be changed before its release, according to the report.
“We are seeking to ensure that the agency follows the rule of law while providing all Americans with access to reliable and affordable energy,” the newspaper cited EPA administrator Lee Zeldin as saying. His spokeswoman declined to give The New York Times more information on the plan, but said the proposal would be published after an inter-agency review and once it’s been signed by the administrator.
US President Donald Trump’s administration has launched a sweeping overhaul of the country’s environmental policy. ProPublica reported in April that the EPA was planning to scale back standards compelling major polluters, including power plants and industrial facilities, to collect and report data on greenhouse gas emissions.
The US is the world’s second-largest polluter, accounting for about 11% of total greenhouse gas emissions in 2023, according to the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research.