As environmental and public health groups challenge a Trump administration proposal to repeal climate-related standards for power plants, advocates in Georgia warn the rollback is likely to increase greenhouse gas emissions in the state.
The rule the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants to repeal was finalized during the Biden Administration. It gives existing coal plants the option to either use technology designed to capture carbon emissions or to close entirely, with a deadline of 2032 to comply. For new natural gas plants, utilities would need to either install carbon capture or simply run the plants less often.
In a statement announcing the change, the EPA said it will “unleash the full potential of America’s vast energy resources, including coal and natural gas.”
“The Trump Administration has come in to protect American energy and to make sure you can afford to keep the lights on,” said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin in the statement.
In their lawsuit, groups including the Natural Resources Defense Council and American Public Health Association argue the proposed change threatens public health and the environment.
“Clean air is a basic human right. Power plant pollution threatens the health of millions of Americans and fuels climate change, worsening extreme heat, poor air quality, and other serious health risks,” said Georges C. Benjamin, CEO of the American Public Health Association, in a statement.
Retiring, then extending coal
In Georgia, where Georgia Power currently operates two coal-fired power plants, the Biden-era rule, which most experts agree was geared toward phasing out coal by requiring either costly technology or closure, was starting to have an effect.
In its 2022 long-term plan, Georgia Power, the state’s largest electricity utility, determined that it was too expensive to keep its coal plants running with carbon capture systems. At the time, it had three coal plants in operation in Georgia, plus units at a plant in Alabama that use coal as a backup. The utility asked for permission from state regulators to retire the entire fleet of coal plants, and ultimately got approval to close all but one: Plant Bowen, in Bartow County.
When Trump came back into office, though, the calculus changed. According to Maggie Shober of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, utilities have been planning for the repeal of the Biden-era rule since President Donald Trump was elected to a second term.
“Everybody understood it was not going to stay in effect,” she said.
Indeed, in 2025, Georgia Power got approval from the Georgia Public Service Commission to put off retiring two power plants — one of its own, and one operated by its sister company, Alabama Power. The agreement extended the life of one coal unit at Plant Scherer, near Macon, and four at Plant Gaston, in Alabama. Plant Gaston primarily runs on natural gas, with coal as a backup.
At the same time, the agreement also called for the company to pursue compliance with the Biden-era rule for Plant Bowen and Plant Scherer.
During hearings leading up to the decision, Georgia Power officials told the PSC that in order to account for the regulatory uncertainty, the company ran nine planning scenarios, three of which included compliance with the rule and six of which did not.
“These scenarios provide a flexible framework for the company to evaluate its options among differing plausible future scenarios, positioning it to make informed resource planning decisions,” Jeff Grubb, the utility’s director of resource policy and planning, said in his testimony at the hearing.
In 2024, the most recent year for which the U.S. Energy Information Administration has published data, Plant Bowen emitted nearly 11 million tons of carbon dioxide, and Plant Scherer emitted more than eight million tons, placing them in the top 25 of the most carbon-emitting power plants in the country. Plant Gaston emitted more than two million tons that year.
Georgia’s emissions future
Georgia Power continues to use its two coal plants, plus power from Plant Gaston in Alabama. And, as a result of the rising demand from data centers, the utility is building out new capacity to generate power with natural gas, which is largely composed of methane.
Without the EPA restrictions, Shober said emissions from those new gas turbines could more than double. Under the Biden-era rule, the utility would have been able to run them about 40 percent of the time without adding expensive carbon-capture technology, producing about four million tons of carbon dioxide a year, according to Shober. Running 85 percent of the time, as they’d likely be able to do under normal operations if the EPA’s proposed changes go through, she estimated the turbines would produce 8.5 million tons.
Georgia Power’s parent company, Southern Company, did not grant an interview or answer specific questions. A spokesperson sent a statement saying the company “supports regulatory certainty with a durable framework that leads to reliable and affordable electricity for our customers.” The statement made no mention of the company’s greenhouse gas reduction goal of net zero by 2050.
The EPA’s rule change isn’t final yet. There will be a public comment period, plus the lawsuit challenging the change will have to move through the court system.
This story is available through a news partnership with WABE, Atlanta’s National Public Radio affiliate.
