US Revokes Limits on Power Plants' Climate Pollution
Recorded: Sept. 20, 2026, 7:10 p.m.
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US Revokes Limits on Power Plants’ Climate Pollution | Human Rights Watch | Text Version Skip to main content Text Version | US Revokes Limits on Power Plants’ Climate Pollution New Rule Could Increase Health Damaging Pollutants Matthew Reysio-Cruz Researcher, Environment and Human Rights Image Load Image Pollution and steam are seen rising from the stacks of the Miami Fort Power Station along the Ohio River, in North Bend, Ohio, on July 23, 2026. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on September 14 that it is repealing limits on climate-warming pollution from coal and gas-fired power plants, the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the country.By gutting the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards, the EPA is eliminating most of the limits on power plants’ carbon emissions. The move is one of the Trump administration’s most significant attacks yet on the US government’s ability to confront the climate crisis and protect communities devastated by pollution.The 2024 standards required existing coal plants and new gas plants to capture 90 percent of carbon emissions or shut down by 2039, which would have reduced carbon pollution by an estimated 1.38 billion metric tons through 2047. The Biden-era rule was also projected to help reduce power plants’ emissions of health-harming pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and fine particulate matter.Human Rights Watch has documented how these pollutants from industrial operations can degrade air quality and harm the health of communities living nearby. Our research in countries like Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Türkiye has shown how coal-fired plants, in particular, can emit pollution that contributes to dangerous levels of air pollution. The Biden administration estimated that the 2024 Carbon Standards would prevent 1,200 deaths and 360,000 asthma attacks in the US in 2035 alone.The EPA claimed its repeal of the 2024 standards would save businesses $370 million in regulatory costs but did not say what the costs to public health would be. In January, the agency said it would no longer factor in health costs when estimating the economic impact of pollution limits.In its announcement rescinding the 2024 carbon standards, the EPA also proposed removing “all remaining greenhouse gas emissions requirements for power plants,” arguing these emissions do not impact climate change. In 2025, the agency also revoked its 2009 finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health, a finding grounded in scientific evidence that had provided a legal foundation for federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions.While the Trump administration mounts a full-throated denial of decades of scientific evidence, communities across the country—and the world—are already contending with the consequences of the climate crisis. The EPA should restore the 2024 standards and strengthen its regulation of the fossil fuel industry. Region / Country United States Topic Climate Change Text-only navigation Countries Topics Reports News Languages Search Donate Footer menu Contact Us Corrections Privacy Policy Permissions Site Map Child Safeguarding BlueskyXFacebookYouTubeInstagramLinkedInTikTok |
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the repeal of limits on climate-warming pollution emanating from coal and gas-fired power plants on September 14, 2026, by eliminating most of the restrictions set by the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards. This action represents a significant challenge to the government’s stated goals regarding addressing the climate crisis and protecting communities affected by pollution. The previous 2024 standards imposed requirements on existing coal plants and new gas plants to either capture ninety percent of carbon emissions or shut down by the year 2039, a measure projected to reduce carbon pollution by an estimated one point three eight billion metric tons through 2047. Furthermore, the Biden administration's rule was also intended to mitigate emissions of health-harming pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and fine particulate matter. Human Rights Watch has documented the detrimental effects of these industrial operations, showing how pollution degrades air quality and negatively impacts the health of nearby communities. Research conducted by Human Rights Watch in various countries, including Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Türkiye, demonstrated that coal-fired power plants, in particular, release pollution that contributes to dangerously high levels of air pollution. The Biden administration had previously estimated that the 2024 Carbon Standards would prevent one thousand two hundred deaths and three hundred sixty thousand asthma attacks in the United States by 2035 alone. In justifying the repeal, the EPA claimed that eliminating the 2024 standards would result in cost savings for businesses, specifically saving them three hundred seventy million dollars in regulatory costs. However, the agency explicitly stated that it would no longer factor in public health costs when estimating the economic impact of pollution limits, which contrasts with the potential health consequences. In addition to repealing the carbon standards, the EPA proposed removing all remaining greenhouse gas emissions requirements for power plants, based on the argument that these emissions do not impact climate change. This stance is further supported by the agency's action in 2025, when it revoked its 2009 finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health, a finding that had previously provided a legal basis for federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. The text suggests that despite the administration's denial of scientific evidence, communities globally are enduring the consequences of the climate crisis, advocating that the EPA should instead restore the 2024 standards and strengthen its regulation of the fossil fuel industry to protect public health. |