The Trump Administration is Delaying Mandates Requiring Steelmakers to Reduce Emissions
The Trump administration is delaying mandates requiring steelmakers U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs to cut toxic admissions, drawing praise from the steelmaking industry and dismay from environmentalists. A July 1 order from the Environmental Protection Agency is postponed until April 2027, preventing stricter emissions standards for the country’s integrated steel mills, which are all run by the two companies. Another rule being delayed has to do with regulations on producing coke, a fuel derived from coal that is used to melt iron ore, until July 2027. U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs make a lot of their own coke but also source it from local suppliers.
The rules in question would have slashed the release of chemicals linked to cancer, heart disease, and other serious conditions. They were approved by the Biden administration last year and set for gradual implementation starting this month. The EPA is now claiming that it has serious concerns the steel industry could not comply in time. The agency also wanted some clarification on some aspects of the rules. A spokesperson for U.S. Steel criticized the rule as detached from established science, available technology, and business considerations. The spokesperson also claimed that the rule would have provided little, if any, benefit environmentally and would have significantly impacted American jobs and the nation’s critical infrastructure. EPA data suggests costs would have been relatively low.
The agency estimates that delaying the rules would produce savings between $4.6 million and $4.9 million. It is unclear if this is on a per company or industry wide basis, but for multimillion dollar firms like U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs, the savings are minor either way. Pushing back the integrated steelmaking regulations alone will lead to an additional 120 tons of hazardous air pollutants, according to the EPA. Facilities that emit at least 25 tons of air toxins a year are deemed as major air polluters by the agency. U.S. Steel previously requested a two-year presidential exemption to the integrated steelmaking and coke rules.
U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works is an integrated operation, which means it handles everything from smelting raw materials to making finished products for customers. It relies on blast furnaces, which burn much dirtier than the most common alternative, electric arc furnaces. When the EPA created 2024 rules for integrated mills, area residents and advocates gave ample input. The EPA typically collects feedback and then sets regulations, but it did something different called interim rulemaking. It works by putting the rules into effect, then gets reactions to craft a final version. The federal Administrative Procedure Act allows agencies to issue interim rules under very strict narrow circumstances, like immediate danger to human health. It is supposed to be used for real emergencies, not just to protect a company’s bottom line.
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