US Supreme Court allows EPA to limit power plant emissions

• 23 hours ago (2024-10-17)
• David Flin

Coal 291 Emissions 64 North America 1017

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The US Supreme Court has allowed the Environmental Protection Agency to proceed with its plans to limit carbon emissions by power plants.

The temporary decision centred on the regulation enacted by the current administration that seeks to significantly reduce by 90 per cent CO2 emissions from coal-fired power plants. When the regulation was first enacted, around two dozen states challenged it, claiming that it would be too technically challenging to achieve.

Under the rule, coal- and gas-fired power plants scheduled to operate long-term would have to capture or reduce 90 per cent of their emissions by 2032. The requirements are less strict for power plants scheduled to close before 2032.

One of the states that mounted the challenge, West Virginia, said that it will continue to contest the rule. Patrick Morrisey, West Virginia’s Attorney General, said: “We will continue to fight through the merits phase and prove this rule strips the states of important decisions while forcing plants to use technologies that don’t work in the real world. The EPA is trying to transform the nation’s entire grid, forcing power plants to shutter.”