WORRYING

Report: Trump’s Power Plant Plan to Drastically Ease Pollution Rules

A plan expected to be announced next week will reportedly let states set their own emissions rules.

As part of the Trump administration’s rollback of Obama-era emission regulations, states will be allowed to set their own rules on standards for coal-fired power plants, a move environmentalists say could result in a huge spike in pollution, according to The Washington Post. The plan, which Trump is expected to unveil during a visit to West Virginia on Tuesday, would also ease pollution rules, leaving aging coal-fired plants in need of upgrades with no incentive to start using cleaner natural gas or renewable energy, according to the report. The Environmental Protection Agency projects that the plan would only make minor cuts to emissions of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Between 0.7 percent and 1.5 percent of CO2 emissions would be cut by 2030 under the plan, compared to the 19 percent cuts called for under Obama’s Clean Power Plan.