Trump’s War On Climate Continues With Deregulatory Blitz

Photo: EPA

India-West News Desk

WASHINGTON, DC – The Trump administration launched a sweeping rollback of environmental regulations on March 12, repealing Biden-era limits on power plant and vehicle emissions while also scaling back waterway protections. The regulatory changes, spearheaded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), mark a significant shift away from policies aimed at curbing climate change and safeguarding public health, Reuters reported.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called the day “the most consequential day of deregulation in American history” in a video posted on X. His agency announced more than 30 deregulatory measures, accelerating Trump’s pledge to boost coal, manufacturing, and fossil fuel production. Among the key changes, the EPA moved to narrow the definition of waterways protected under the Clean Water Act, easing pollution restrictions on industries like agriculture, mining, and petrochemicals, Reuters noted.

The administration also unveiled plans to weaken emissions standards for power plants and automobiles. The EPA intends to review and roll back the Biden-era clean power plant rule, which was designed to cut carbon emissions from the electricity sector, as well as loosen greenhouse gas standards for both heavy- and light-duty vehicles starting in model year 2027. Since power and transportation account for roughly half of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, these rollbacks strike at the core of previous efforts to combat climate change.

One of the most controversial moves announced was the administration’s plan to challenge the 2009 “endangerment finding,” a scientific determination that greenhouse gas emissions threaten public health. This finding, which underpins the EPA’s authority to regulate emissions, was codified under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. Environmental groups immediately vowed to fight the rollback in court, warning of long-term consequences for climate policy, Reuters reported.

Industry groups welcomed the changes, with the National Mining Association praising the repeal of power plant rules as “long overdue” amid rising electricity demand from data centers and artificial intelligence.