EPA Proposes Relaxing Coal Plant Emissions Rule

Courtesy: MGN

The Trump administration has rolled back a landmark Obama-era effort targeting coal-fired power plants and their climate-damaging pollution.

It's replacing the Obama rule with a less ambitious one that gives states more discretion in regulating those power plants.

Environmental Protection Agency chief Andrew Wheeler calls it a sign that "fossil fuels will continue to be an important part of the mix" in the U.S. energy supply.

President Donald Trump campaigned partly on a pledge to bring back the U.S. coal industry, which has been hit hard by competition from cheaper natural gas and renewable energy.

The rule will go into effect shortly after publication in the Federal Register. 

Meanwhile, New York's attorney general says the state will sue to block the Trump administration's rollback.

Attorney General Letitia James announced the state's intentions on Twitter shortly after the Environmental Protection Agency replaced the rule with a less ambitious one. She makes reference to the administration's "#DirtyPower rule.

She tweets that it's "another prime example of this administration's attempt to rollback critical regulations that will have devastating impacts on both the safety & health of our nation."

The Trump administration says the Obama administration overstepped its legal authority in approving the Clean Power Plan. EPA chief Andrew Wheeler says coal is essential to the nation's power grid. (AP)Â