The Biden administration has reinstated an Obama-era rule on mercury and other toxic chemicals that are emitted from coal-fired and oil-fired power plants, pollutants that the Environmental Protection Agency says are a health risk to people who live near these facilities.
EPA officials said Friday that the rule, known as the 2012 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, is “appropriate and necessary” to regulate emissions from power plants under the existing 1990 Clean Air Act.
The EPA’s determination that the rule is “appropriate and necessary” restores regulatory powers that were limited under the Trump administration and is part of a broader Biden administration push to tighten environmental and climate regulations.
An expanded version of this report appears at WSJ.com.
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