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A4 U.S. NEWS
Friday 7 december 2018

Trump EPA acts to roll back

control on climate-changing coal

istration targeting of leg- Wheeler called the Obama ling under the powerful
acy Obama administra- rules "excessive burdens" force of the free market,"
tion efforts to slow climate for the coal industry. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse,
change comes in the wake "This administration cares a Rhode Island Democrat
of multiplying warnings about action and results, and member of the Senate
from the agency's scientists not talks and wishful think- Environment and Public
and others about the ac- ing," Wheeler said. Works Committee, said in a
celerating pace of global Asked about the harm that statement.
warming. coal plant emission do "Did the EPA even read the
Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler signs an order with- In a ceremony Thursday people and the environ- National Climate Assess-
drawing an Obama era emissions standards policy, at the EPA
Headquarters in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2018. at the agency, acting ment, Wheeler responded, ment?" Whitehouse asked.
Associated Press EPA administrator Andrew "Having cheap electricity It's unclear whether the
Wheeler signed a proposal helps human health." new policy boost will over-
By ELLEN KNICKMEYER this time scaling back what to dismantle a 2015 rule Janet McCabe, an EPA air come market forces that
WASHINGTON (AP) — The would have been a tough that any new coal power official under the Obama are making U.S. coal plants
Environmental Protection control on climate-chang- plants include cutting- administration, and oth- ever more unprofitable.
Agency acted again Thurs- ing emissions from any new edge techniques to cap- ers challenged that. Ma- Competition from cleaner,
day to ease rules on the coal plants. ture the carbon dioxide Cabe in a statement cited cheaper natural gas and
sagging U.S. coal industry, The latest Trump admin- from their smokestacks. the conclusion of the EPA's other rival forms of energy
own staff earlier this year has driven down coal use
that pending rollbacks on in the United States to its
existing coal plants would lowest level since 1979, the
cause thousands of early Energy Information Admin-
deaths from the fine soot istration said this week. This
and dangerous particles year will see the second-
and gases. greatest number of U.S.
The EPA was "turning its closings of coal-fired power
back on its responsibility plants on record.
to protect human health," Senate Majority Leader
McCabe said Thursday. Mitch McConnell, a Ken-
Environmentalists, scien- tucky Republican, said the
tists and lawmakers were EPA's action Thursday was
scathing, saying the Trump "targeting another regula-
administration was un- tion that would have made
dermining what they said it nearly impossible to build
should be urgent efforts to any new plants."
slow climate change. Citing that and other
The EPA and 12 other fed- Obama administration
eral agencies late last moves to tamp down emis-
month warned that climate sions from coal-fired pow-
change caused by burning er plants in the national
coal, oil and gas already electrical grid, McConnell
was worsening natural di- called the proposal "a cru-
sasters in the United States. cial step toward undoing
It would cause hundreds the damage and putting
of billions of dollars in dam- coal back on a level play-
age each year by the end ing field."
of the century, the govern- Jay Duffy, a lawyer with the
ment's National Climate As- Clean Air Task Force envi-
sessment said. ronmental nonprofit, called
"This proposal is another il- the level-playing field ar-
legal attempt by the Trump gument of the adminis-
administration to prop up tration and its supporters
an industry already buck- "laughable."q