COLUMBUS, Ohio— On Friday, the head of the EPA paid a visit to Columbus to roll out the new Affordable Clean Energy rule.
- Rolls back renewable energy benchmarks, in favor of building business
- EPA sets the guidelines, but state sets standards of performance
- Opponents say it benefits few and harms many
“Thanks to President Trump, the ACE rule gives states the regulatory certainty they need—improve air quality, reduce emissions, and provide affordable reliable energy for all Americans,” said Andrew Wheeler, head of the EPA.
But opponents of the plan don’t call it the affordable clean energy rule; they have a different name for it.
“The Trump dirty power plan reduces, or gets rid of enforcement mechanisms, gets rid of annual benchmarks,” said Neil Waggoner, of the Ohio Sierra Club.
The plan aims to weaken regulations for coal-fired power plants, rolling back red tape that the administration views as bad for business.
It’s a systematic dismantling of Obama’s Clean Power Plan, which aimed to put the brakes on greenhouse gas emitted by the power sector.
As Wheeler describes it, with this new plan, the EPA sets the guidelines, but puts state leaders in the driver’s seat.
“The EPA will set the best system of emissions reductions, and then states set the standards of performance,” said wheeler.
Similar to Obama's Clean Power Plan, those emissions reductions include a goal of having co2 emissions 34 percent lower than what they were in 2005.
But it comes with the promise of keeping coal alive—which the Sierra Club says benefits few, and harms many.
“The dirty power plan is a complete handout to the coal industry, to the dirty energy sector, it does nothing to benefit the public, or public health,” said Waggoner.
The plan is a fulfillment of President Trump’s campaign promise to keep the coal industry burning, which environmentalists say is a step in the wrong direction and detrimental to our growth in renewable energy.
“This plan is kind of a last-ditch effort to prop up the coal industry,” said Waggoner. “We’re going to see people staying sick. We’re going to see premature deaths, we’re going to see real impacts."
According to the EPA’s own calculations, the new proposal could account for 1,400 premature deaths related to air pollution, and 48,000 new cases of asthma.
The Sierra Club says once they’ve made a full review of the new rule, they may consider filing a lawsuit to block it.
