President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders aimed at boosting the struggling coal industry, which is considered a reliable but polluting energy source that has been in decline.
The orders utilize Trump’s emergency authority to allow some older coal-fired power plants set for retirement to continue producing electricity to meet the rising demand for power in the US due to factors like the growth of data centers, artificial intelligence, and electric cars.
The big picture: Trump directed federal agencies to identify coal resources on federal lands, remove barriers to coal mining, and prioritize coal leasing on US lands.
- A related action involved signing a proclamation that grants coal-fired power plants a two-year exemption from federal requirements to reduce emissions of toxic chemicals like mercury, arsenic and benzene.
- The administration offered exemptions to power plants and other industrial polluters under rules imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency, allowing them to request presidential exemptions under the Clean Air Act.
Go deeper: The orders also mandated Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to acknowledge the end of an Obama-era moratorium on coal leasing on federal lands and required the rescinding of policies transitioning away from coal production.
- The directives aimed to promote coal and coal technology exports and accelerate the development of coal technologies while also addressing what Trump termed as overreach by Democratic-controlled states to curb energy production to mitigate climate change.
