EPA chief celebrates rollback of regulations.
@CDTCivilWar CLIFTON HILL — As the Environmental Protection Agency accelerates efforts to undo Obama-era regulations, Administrator Scott Pruitt is already celebrating his efforts to loosen limits on power plant emission limits and the flow of pollutants into surface water.
The coal-fired power plant, operated by Associated Electric Cooperative Inc., supplies electricity to rural cooperatives that have more than 2 million members.
He did not mention the latest action from Tuesday, when the EPA asked the Washington, D.C., appeals court to delay its review of regulations already in place that limit emissions of mercury and other toxic elements from power plants.
The court is considering whether the EPA has met a requirement that it show the costs and benefits of the rule.
The Thomas Hill power plant emitted 508 pounds of mercury in 2015, the latest year available on the EPA’s database of toxic discharges.
Blunt, speaking to reporters, said he was unsure why Pruitt wants to delay the court hearing on the rule but he agrees with how Pruitt is doing his job.
The mine has been closed and reclaimed and the power plant has burned low-sulfur coal since 1994 to reduce emissions.
The regulations intended to control emissions further threatened the future of the Thomas Hill plant, associated vice president Barry Hart said.
The plant employs 223 people who earn an average of $35 per hour, Hart said.