25 US states challenge EPA power plant emissions rule in court
FILE PHOTO: Signage is seen at the headquarters of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 10, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
By Clark Mindock
(Reuters) -A group of 25 Republican state attorneys general sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday seeking to block a landmark rule requiring sweeping reductions in carbon emissions from existing coal-fired power plants and new natural gas plants, major contributors to climate change.
The lawsuit challenging regulations for those power plants, finalized on April 25 by President Joe Biden’s administration, was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
The rule mandates that many new gas and existing coal plants reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2032. The requirements are expected to force the U.S. power industry to install billions of dollars worth of emissions control technologies or shut down the dirtiest facilities running on coal.
The regulations are part of Biden’s broader agenda to fight climate change, and target a sector that is responsible for nearly a quarter of the country’s greenhouse gas pollution.
(Reporting by Clark Mindock, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Christina Fincher)