US EPA wants to erase greenhouse gas limits on power plants, NYT reports

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has drafted a plan to eliminate all limits on greenhouse gases from coal and gas-fired power plants in the United States, the New York Times reported on Saturday, citing internal agency documents.

The EPA argued in its proposed regulation that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from power plants that burn fossil fuels "do not contribute significantly to dangerous pollution" or to climate change because they are a small and declining share of global emissions, according to the NYT report.

The EPA also said that eliminating those emissions would have no meaningful effect on public health and welfare, the report added.

According to the United Nations, fossil fuels are by far the largest contributors to global warming, accounting for more than 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90% of carbon dioxide emissions.

Responding to the NYT story, the EPA said it was developing a proposed rule.

"Many have voiced concerns that the last administration's replacement for that rule is similarly overreaching and an attempt to shut down affordable and reliable electricity generation in the United States, raising prices for American families, and increasing the country's reliance on foreign forms of energy," a spokesperson for the agency said in statement.

"As part of this reconsideration, EPA is developing a proposed rule. The proposal will be published once it has completed interagency review and been signed by the administrator."

The U.S. government under President Donald Trump has moved quickly to remove all federal spending related to efforts to combat climate change and to eliminate any regulation aimed at addressing greenhouse gas emissions as part of its effort to bolster oil, gas and mining operations.

On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives advanced Trump's sweeping tax and spending bill, which may end numerous green-energy subsidies that have supported the renewable energy sector.

Trump's budget package - which he calls "one big beautiful bill" - would eliminate funding established under former U.S. President Joe Biden's administration through the Inflation Reduction Act and repeal grants intended to reduce air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions or purchase electric heavy-duty vehicles.

The NYT report adds that the EPA sent the draft to the White House for review on May 2, which could undergo changes before it is formally released and the public is given the opportunity to offer comments, likely in June.