# EPA Repeals Power Plant Climate Rules, Citing $310 Billion in Savings

- URL: https://twotakes.us/stories/epa-repeals-power-plant-climate-rules-citing-310-billion-in-savings
- Published: 2026-09-16T19:04:25.279810+00:00
- Topics: epa, climate-change, energy-policy, regulation, clean-air-act

## What the left says
- Coal is the single dirtiest major energy source and phasing it out is considered the most effective lever the world has to slow global warming, making this repeal a major setback for climate progress.
- The rule change effectively guts the last major federal tool for cutting greenhouse gases from the power sector, the largest industrial source of emissions in the country, and could hamstring future administrations from regulating them at all.
- The EPA justifies the rollback by casting doubt on established climate science, echoing the same rationale used to repeal vehicle emissions standards, which many see as an effort to dismantle the scientific basis for regulation itself.
- Weakening methane rules for low-producing 'stripper wells' will eliminate a tiny fraction of oil and gas output while allowing roughly half of the sector's methane pollution to continue, disproportionately benefiting a narrow slice of industry at the public's expense.

## What the right says
- The repeal removes billions of dollars in compliance costs tied to carbon capture technology that regulators themselves acknowledge is not yet commercially viable or widely available.
- Forcing coal plants to either shut down early or install expensive, unproven carbon-capture equipment threatens grid reliability and drives up electricity prices for households and businesses.
- The Clean Air Act was originally intended to control tangible pollutants like carbon monoxide, not to give federal regulators sweeping authority to reshape the entire electricity sector in the name of climate policy.
- Even complete elimination of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions would have a negligible effect on global climate trends, so the economic sacrifice demanded by these rules was disproportionate to any environmental benefit.

## Common ground
- The EPA's actions represent one of the largest deregulatory moves in the history of the power sector.
- The repeal is expected to save the energy industry and consumers a substantial amount of money, estimated by the EPA at around $310 billion.
- The rule change will extend the operational life of existing coal plants and ease the path for new natural gas plant construction.
- The policy is likely to face immediate legal challenges over the scope of the EPA's authority under the Clean Air Act.

## Sources
- [Blaze Media](https://www.theblaze.com/news/epa-carbon-emissions-repeal) (Right)
- [Daily Caller](https://dailycaller.com/2026/09/14/epa-dismantles-biden-era-powerplant-climate-rule) (Right)
- [Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion](https://legalinsurrection.com/2026/09/trump-epa-plans-to-repeal-biden-era-power-plant-greenhouse-gas-rules/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=trump-epa-plans-to-repeal-biden-era-power-plant-greenhouse-gas-rules) (Unknown)
- [Mother Jones](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/09/trump-epa-lee-zeldin-power-plant-emissions-rule-rollback-coal-pollution-biden-climate-legacy/) (Left)
- [Mother Jones](https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/09/the-epa-would-rather-monitor-water-for-abortion-pills-than-pollution/) (Left)
- [National Review](https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/09/college-freshmen-if-you-care-about-justice-beware-the-free-palestine-movement/) (Lean Right)
- [ProPublica](https://www.propublica.org/article/methane-gas-epa-proposal-stripper-wells) (Lean Left)
- [The Economist](https://www.economist.com/united-states/2026/02/15/checks-and-balance-the-death-of-the-endangerment-finding) (Lean Right)
- [The Economist](https://www.economist.com/united-states/2026/02/13/how-dangerous-is-donald-trumps-endangerment-decision) (Lean Right)
- [Washington Free Beacon](https://freebeacon.com/energy/trump-epa-moves-to-permanently-eliminate-greenhouse-gas-emissions-rules-for-power-plants-gutting-bidens-signature-environmental-policies/) (Unknown)

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