"Trump Exempts Scores of Plants From Biden’s Pollution Rules"

"President Donald Trump is allowing chemical makers, coal-fired power plants and other facilities to bypass a range of environmental regulations on grounds that the waivers are needed for national security purposes.

The plants, which also include taconite iron ore processing operations and chemical manufacturing facilities that play a role in the production of semiconductors and energy, were granted two-year waivers from Environmental Protection Agency rules via proclamations signed by Trump and released on Thursday evening. The rules were finalized under the previous Biden administration.

“The exemptions ensure that these facilities within these critical industries can continue to operate uninterrupted to support national security without incurring substantial costs to comply with, in some cases, unattainable compliance requirements,” the White House said in a statement.

Among the exempted operations were taconite iron ore plants in Minnesota owned by the United States Steel Corp. and six facilities owned by Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. in Minnesota and Michigan, according to the White House, which said the steel was used in national defense systems and other critical infrastructure."

Ari Natter reports for Bloomberg News July 17, 2025.

Environmental Politics