EPA proposes historic limits on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants despite opposition.

The Biden administration has proposed the first regulations to limit greenhouse pollution from existing power plants, which would effectively eliminate carbon dioxide emissions from the nation’s electricity sector by 2040. The regulations would set caps on pollution rates, which power plant operators would have to meet. The plan is sure to face opposition from the fossil fuel industry, power plant operators, and their allies in Congress. The proposed rules would increase costs for power plant operators, but the EPA estimates that limiting pollution from smokestacks would produce a net economic benefit of up to $85 billion by 2042 through improved public health from lower levels of soot and sulfur dioxide.