WASHINGTON (AP) — Industry groups representing hundreds of chemical and petrochemical manufacturers are seeking blanket exemptions from federal requirements to reduce emissions of toxic chemicals such as mercury, arsenic and benzene.
The request by the American Chemistry Council and the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers comes as the Trump administration offers industrial polluters a chance for exemptions from rules imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has set up an electronic mailbox to allow regulated companies to request a two-year presidential exemption under the Clean Air Act to a host of Biden-era rules.
The chemistry council and the petrochemical group said in a letter Monday to the EPA that regulation of the chemical industry is supposed to be based on sound science and “reflect a reasonable assessment of the risks and benefits involved.”
“Unfortunately,” the groups wrote, an EPA rule on air pollution from stationary sources “undermines those important objectives and advances improper and significantly costly requirements on an unworkable timeline.”
The Associated Press obtained a copy of the letter on Friday.
Costs for the rule’s risk-related requirements alone could exceed $50 billion, the groups said, “significantly more than the $1.8 billion for the full rule that EPA estimated at final publication” last year.
Environmental groups have denounced the administration’s offer to grant industry exemptions, calling the new email address a “polluters’ portal” that could allow hundreds of companies to evade laws meant to protect the environment and public health. Exemptions would be allowed for nine EPA rules issued under former President Joe Biden, including limits on mercury, ethylene oxide and other hazardous air pollutants. Mercury exposure can cause brain damage, especially in children. Fetuses are vulnerable to birth defects via exposure in a mother’s womb.
The Environmental Defense Fund accused the chemical and petrochemical companies — which include giants such as ExxonMobil, Marathon Petroleum, Chevron, Dow and DuPont — of “hiding behind their associations to get a presidential exemption from pollution safeguards that keep our kids healthy and safe.”
New EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin “has opened a back door for hundreds of companies to avoid complying with reasonable limits on the most toxic forms of air pollution, and they’re rushing through it with no regard for the communities around them,'' said Vickie Patton, the group's general counsel.
Granting the exemption would be “a huge blow to American families who now must worry about their loved ones breathing dirtier air, their kids missing more school days because of asthma attacks and more cancer in their families,” Patton said. "There is no basis in U.S. clean air laws — and in decency — for this absolute free pass to pollute.”
EDF has filed a request under the federal Freedom of Information Act for all records related to the EPA portal — including the names of those seeking exemptions — and pledged to go to court to obtain the records if necessary and make them public.
The EPA's offer to grant exemptions marks at least the third time Zeldin has moved to weaken enforcement of environmental laws since he took office less than two months ago. He previously announced a series of actions to roll back landmark environmental regulations, including rules on pollution from coal-fired power plants, climate change and electric vehicles.
Zeldin also said he would push for a 65% spending cut at the agency, and has moved to drastically reduce EPA staffing. The agency is considering a plan to eliminate its scientific research office and has sought to claw back $20 billion in “green bank” grants approved by the Biden administration to promote clean energy.
Use of presidential exemptions to EPA rule is rare, although Biden offered some last year after tightening emission standards for ethylene oxide from commercial facilities that sterilize medical equipment.
The EPA directed questions about the possible exemptions to the White House, noting that authority for any exemption rests with the president. White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said no decisions have been made, but said, “we can confirm President Trump’s commitment to unleashing American energy, protecting our national security interests and ensuring environmental stewardship.”
The chemistry council said in a statement Friday that its members “greatly appreciate the current administration’s willingness to offer a pathway for relief from the unrealistic timelines” set by the Biden administration.
“We look forward to working expeditiously with EPA throughout this process to develop appropriate, science-based requirements that help protect public health and safety without imposing unnecessary regulatory burdens on domestic manufacturers that would undermine our national security and American competitiveness,” the statement said.
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Matthew Daly, The Associated Press
