EPA Proposes 1st Limits on Carbon Emissions From Power Plants

On Thursday, Biden administration officials shared their biggest plan yet to help stop climate change . They want to make power plants that use coal or gas to create less pollution. 

These plants could do this by using special tools to catch carbon before it goes into the air. Or, they could use clean hydrogen instead of coal or gas. Right now, power plants create about one-fourth of all the pollution in the U.S. The only thing that creates more pollution is cars and trucks. 

“We are in the decisive decade for climate action," Ali Zaidi said Wednesday. He is Biden’s senior climate adviser.  

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) thinks this plan could help a lot. They think it could stop about 617 million metric tons of carbon from going into the air by 2042. That's like taking 137 million cars off the road. 

However, not everyone likes this plan. Some people who run power plants, people who work with fossil fuels, and some Republicans in Congress think President Biden's rules are too tough. They worry that the rules might cause problems with the electricity supply. 

Patrick Morrissey is the West Virginia Attorney General. He doesn't think the plan will hold up in court. “It just seems designed to scare more coal-fired power plants into retirement,” he said. 

He is part of a group who has sued the Biden administration. They are hoping to block its climate policies. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said that the plan is not designed to intentionally shut down coal-fired plants. However, he said that some plants that don't meet the new standards may be closed.     

Photo from Reuters.

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