Protection and Production: EPA MATS Rule Restores Balance in Cost-Benefit Analysis
President Trump and EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler continue to rack up regulatory fixes to the mess they inherited from the Obama administration.
WASHINGTON DC (April 16, 2020) – The American Energy Alliance (AEA) announced its support for the final updated Mercury and Air Toxics (MATS) rule released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today. MATS sets allowable limits for chemicals that can be emitted into the atmosphere from oil and coal-fired power plants.
In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled in Michigan v. EPA that the Obama administration’s EPA failed to take into consideration the cost of their original rule and returned it back to the agency. Shortly after the ruling, then EPA Administrator, and current head of the green pressure-group Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), bragged that the court’s ruling had no bearing and that MATS had already contributed to the Obama administration’s “war on coal” by shutting down a significant number of coal-fired electricity plants.
Thomas Pyle, President of the American Energy Alliance, issued the following statement in reaction to today’s announcement:
“Today’s rule reconsideration is another in a long line of regulatory corrections made by the Trump administration aimed at more accurately following the letter of the law and balancing the cost-benefit relationship between protecting our health and maintaining a vibrant energy industry, which is essential to keeping prices affordable for American families.”
“The Obama administration blatantly abused the rule-making process by vastly overstating the benefits of their original MATS rule as part of their ‘war on coal.’ President Trump fulfilled yet another promise to the American people by restoring the cost-benefit approach that is consistent with the Clean Air Act and the Supreme Court’s ruling. While it is unfortunate that so much coal-fired electricity generation was taken off line because of the original rule, but at least future presidents can no longer abuse their authority to advance radical, anti-coal political agendas at the expense of the American people.”
“The regulatory process must always maintain a balanced cost-benefit approach, but unfortunately the heavy hand of government has weighed in too often tipping the scale one way or another. Today’s rule addresses past regulatory abuses by former EPA Administrator and current NRDC head Gina McCarthy. At the same time, it protects human health by preserving current mercury emissions protections. If the green left or the media say otherwise, they are either being intentionally misleading or fail to understand this rule.”
“The bottom line is if the greens don’t like the law, they should urge Congress to change it, not rage war against affordable energy through the EPA’s back door.”
In addition to today’s MATS rule, the EPA also recently determined to retain existing primary and secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter (PM). PM are extremely small particles that scientists and environmental air quality experts track in our atmosphere that may be deemed harmful to our health. Since 2000, the U.S. has reduced emissions that can contribute to PM, including reducing SO2 84% while NOx air releases are down 54%. Continued implementation of existing regulations can help continue this trend without unnecessarily burdening an already fragile economy due to our efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
According to the EPA, between 1970 and 2017, U.S. gross domestic product increased 262 percent, vehicle miles traveled increased 189 percent, energy consumption increased 59 percent, and U.S. population increased by 44 percent. During the same time period, total emissions of the six principal air pollutants dropped by 73 percent.
Despite doom-and-gloom predictions made by extreme environmental groups like the NRDC, the U.S. has emerged a model for environmental protection and responsible energy production.
Additional Resources
- History of the MATS Regulation
- Cleaned-Up Coal and Clean Air: Facts About Air Quality and Coal-Fired Power Plants
- 2015 SCOTUS Mercury Ruling as Wake Up Call for EPA
- Breathe Easier: Why America’s Air is Among the Cleanest in the World
- Hard Facts: An Energy Primer (Edition 4)
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