WASHINGTON – In a victory for President Joe Biden’s administration, a federal appeals court ruled Friday that a new federal regulation aimed at limit planet-warming pollution from coal-fired power plants may remain in effect as legal challenges continue.
Industry groups and some Republican-led states have asked the court to block the Environmental Protection Agency rule on an emergency basis, saying it was unattainable and threatened the reliability of the country’s electrical grid.
The EPA rule, announced in April, would force many coal-fired power plants to capture 90% of their carbon emissions or close within eight years. The rules are a key part of the Democratic president’s commitment to eliminate carbon pollution from the electricity sector by 2035 and across the economy by 2050.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected the industry’s request to block the rule, saying the groups have not demonstrated they are likely to succeed on the merits. The case also did not invoke an important issue under a previous Supreme Court rulingsince the EPA claimed only the power to “establish emission limits…that would reduce pollution by making the regulated source operate more cleanly,” the appeals court ruled.
The unanimous decision also rejected the claim of immediate harm, saying compliance deadlines will not take effect until 2030 or 2032.
The decision was handed down by judges Patricia Millett, Cornelia Pillard and Neomi Rao. Millett and Pillard were nominated by President Barack Obama, a Democrat, while Rao was appointed to the court by President Donald Trump, a Republican.
Environmental groups welcomed the ruling, saying the court recognized the EPA’s legal responsibility to control harmful pollution, including greenhouse gas emissions. The energy sector is the country’s second largest contributor to of Climate Change.
“Americans across the country are suffering from intense heat waves, extreme storms and floods, and increased wildfires caused by climate pollution,” said Vickie Patton, general counsel at the Environmental Defense Fund, who filed a petition friend of the court in the case. EDF and other groups “will continue to strongly advocate for the EPA’s viable and cost-effective carbon pollution standards for power plants,” she said.
Meredith Hankins, an attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the EPA rule “establishes reasonable standards for utilities and states to reduce their carbon pollution.” The scorching heat wave reaching much of the country is a sign of how necessary the rules are, she said.
“The idea that energy producers needed immediate relief from the modest standards that would take effect eight years from now was patently absurd,” Hankins added. West Virginia and other states that have challenged the rule “have plenty of time to begin their planning process” to comply with the rule, she said.
The National Mining Association, which joined the legal challenges, said it would seek an emergency stay from the Supreme Court.
“The risks could not be greater. The country’s power supply is already being pushed to the limit and this rule goes against what utility companies, grid operators and grid reliability experts tell us is necessary to maintain grid reliability.” said Rich Nolan, the group’s president and CEO.
Nolan and other industry leaders said the rule would force the premature closure of power plants that are crucial to maintaining grid reliability, even as demand for electricity surges.
Timothy Carroll, an EPA spokesman, said the agency was pleased that the court allowed the plant rule to go into effect while litigation continues.
“EPA’s final standards will significantly reduce emissions of harmful carbon pollution from existing coal-fired power plants, which continue to be the energy sector’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions,” Carroll said.
The EPA predicts the rule will yield up to $370 billion in net climate and health benefits and prevent nearly 1.4 billion metric tons of carbon pollution by 2047, the equivalent of preventing annual emissions of $328 million. of gasoline-powered automobiles.
The plant rule marks the first time the federal government has restricted Carbon dioxide emissions of existing coal-fired power plants. The rule would also force future power plants fueled by coal or natural gas to control up to 90% of their carbon pollution.
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