EPA proposes rollback on rules limiting carbon and air pollution from fossil fuel power plants

The Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday that it will seek to revoke a key rule put in place by the Biden administration that set limits on the amount of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change, emitted from fossil fuel-fired power plants.

The rule was finalized in April 2024 and is projected to reduce 1.38 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere by 2047, as well as eliminate tens of thousands of tons of other harmful air pollutants that are dangerous to public health. Eliminating 1.38 billion metric tons of carbon emissions is equivalent to driving more than 320 million gas-powered cars for a year, according to an EPA estimate.

At a news conference Wednesday, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said the Trump administration is demonstrating that it "can both protect the environment and grow the economy."