US scraps greenhouse gas rules for power plants

The US Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it's scrapping rules aimed at limiting greenhouse gas emissions from coal and gas-fired power plants.

Most of the greenhouse gas requirements for US power plants introduced under the administration of former president Joe Biden are being repealed, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced at a G20 ministerial meeting in Houston, Texas on Monday.

"For over 15 years, the Obama and Biden administrations implemented a war on coal to destroy reliable and affordable energy," Zeldin was quoted as saying in an EPA statement.

The administration of President Donald Trump had come in to change that, he said.

The EPA said coal production for use by the power sector was expected to increase more than tenfold.

The repeal is widely expected to face legal challenges. It concerns standards introduced in 2024 that required coal-fired power plants to drastically reduce their emissions or shut down by 2039.

The EPA has also proposed rescinding all remaining greenhouse gas requirements for power plants, arguing that current law does not give it the authority to regulate such emissions on the basis of climate change.

In February, the agency rescinded the so-called Endangerment Finding, which since 2009 had classified major greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, as a threat to public health and welfare.

Greenhouse gases are the main driver of human-caused climate change. The United States is among the world's largest emitters.

Trump has rolled back several climate measures since taking office. The US formally withdrew from the Paris climate agreement in January.