The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is set to repeal Obama-era rules that formed the legal basis for climate regulations, including those targeting gas-powered vehicle emissions and coal plants, according to Lee Zeldin, the agency's head.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Zeldin said the action amounts to the largest act of deregulation in US history. The EPA is expected to formally rescind the rule, known as the endangerment finding, as soon as Thursday.
Background on the Endangerment Finding
The original finding, issued in 2009, determined that carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases endanger public health and must be regulated under the Clean Air Act. This led to regulations on emissions from coal-fired power plants, methane emissions from oil and gas field operations, and strict fuel economy standards for new vehicles.
The EPA estimates that vehicle regulations stemming from the finding alone have cost Americans more than $1 trillion. The Trump administration's actions could dismantle many of these regulations, which have been supported by left-wing lawmakers and activists in their effort to transition the US to green energy sources.
According to Myron Ebell, who headed the first Trump administration's EPA transition team, withdrawing the endangerment finding is fantastic news for American workers and consumers. However, the actions are likely to invite litigation from Democratic states and climate groups that see the endangerment finding as essential.
Environmental Defense Fund president Fred Krupp vowed to take the EPA to court, saying the evidence, and the lived experiences of many Americans, tell us that our health will suffer. Led by Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), every Democratic senator signed a letter to Zeldin in September demanding he preserve the endangerment finding.
The issue dates back to the 1970s, when Congress passed the Clean Air Act. The act requires the EPA to regulate any air pollutant emitted by mobile sources, like cars, and stationary sources, like power plants, that the agency determines to cause or contribute to pollution endangering public health or welfare. For decades, the EPA did not interpret that provision to include greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide and methane.