The Donald Trump administration announced this Friday (20) that it will roll back clean air regulations that limit emissions of mercury and other dangerous toxins from power plants, claiming that the measure will expand so-called “baseline energy”. Public health entities, however, warn that the change should especially harm the most vulnerable in the United States.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said easing pollution standards will reduce costs for utilities operating older coal plants at a time when demand for energy is growing with the expansion of data centers used in artificial intelligence applications.
Environmental groups criticized the weakening of rules for mercury — a neurotoxin that can affect the brain development of babies — and other air pollutants, saying the measure tends to increase health spending.
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Supreme Court had maintained stricter rules
The Rule on Mercury and Toxic Substances in the Air (MATS), updated in 2024 under the Joe Biden administration based on 2012 rules from the Barack Obama administration, remained in force after the Supreme Court rejected a challenge presented by mostly Republican states and industrial entities that asked for the rules to be suspended.
According to the Environmental Defense Fund, the upgrades would reduce mercury pollution from coal plants by 70%, cut emissions of nickel, arsenic, lead and other toxic metals by two-thirds, and save $420 million in healthcare costs by 2037.
The EPA said the 2012 MATS rule already provides “a broad margin of safety to protect public health” and argued that the 2024 additions would generate more costs than benefits. In the final decision published this Friday, the agency estimated that returning to 2012 standards will bring annual savings of US$69 million to US$78 million between 2028 and 2037.
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Environmental and health entities, however, claim that the increase in damage to public health with the relaxation of rules outweighs any cost reduction. “Updates approved in 2024 would generate $300 million in additional health benefits,” said Harold Wimmer, president of the American Lung Association. “They protected pregnant women, babies and children from harmful exposures and saved thousands of lives a year.”
