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The Environmental Protection Agency rule applies to existing
coal-fired power plants and any new natural gas plants.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Washington,
D.C. found that a stay was not necessary because the states
faced no immediate harm, since the rule's earliest compliance
deadline is in 2030.
An EPA spokesperson said that the agency was pleased with the
ruling. West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who is
leading the challenge, said in a statement that the rule was
unlawful and he would seek a stay from the U.S. Supreme Court.
The rule, part of Democratic President Joe Biden's broader
climate agenda, requires that greenhouse gas emissions be
reduced by 90% by 2032.
It has been challenged not only by the states, which include
Indiana, Ohio and Kansas, but by electric utility, mining and
coal industry trade groups.
To comply, the U.S. power industry - which produces nearly a
quarter of U.S. greenhouse gas pollution - would have to install
costly emissions control technologies or shut down the dirtiest
plants running on coal.
The EPA has said the reductions are feasible if the plants
install carbon capture and sequestration technology that prevent
emissions reaching the atmosphere.
The challengers contend that the method has not yet been
meaningfully deployed and is too costly. They have also said the
EPA exceeded its authority by making the rule and needed
explicit congressional approval to do so.
(Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia
Garamfalvi and Cynthia Osterman)
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