[5]
By Oregon Attorney General,
Press Release
Attorney General Dan Rayfield and a coalition of 20 other states and local governments sued the Trump administration today for weakening federal limits on mercury and other toxic pollutants released by coal and oil-fired power plants [6]. The administration recently rolled back the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) Rule, allowing power plants to release more dangerous chemicals into the air – chemicals that can travel across state lines and settle into rivers and waterways.
“Oregon families deserve clean water and a federal government that fights for that – not one that gives pollutants a free pass,” said Attorney General Rayfield. “Mercury poison does not stop at state lines – it travels, deposits in rivers and waterways, and ends up in the fish people eat. Rolling back these protections puts pregnant women, children, and families across Oregon at greater risk.”
The MATS Rule implements nationwide standards that limit emissions of toxic air pollutants from coal- and oil-fired power plants, including mercury, arsenic, lead and other toxic metals, in addition to acid gases, such as hydrogen chloride and formaldehyde. In 2024, following significant developments in the technologies used to control pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated the standards for emissions of these hazardous air pollutants from power plants. Last month, the Trump administration rolled back the updated standard, allowing for more of these dangerous emissions to be released into the air.
While mercury and other hazardous air pollutants disproportionately harm people who live near coal- and oil-fired power plants, the emissions can also travel great distances and be deposited into other states. Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that poses serious dangers to public health, especially for pregnant women and children. For example, a pregnant person’s consumption of mercury exposes their child to mercury and can cause lifelong developmental harms and neurological disorders such as seizures, vision and hearing loss, or delayed development. Exposure to mercury also increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and autoimmune dysfunction in adults.
Mercury emissions from power plants are also a major contributor to mercury contamination in U.S. waterways, including the Columbia River. Mercury pollution in lakes and rivers harms the local commercial and recreation fishing economies.
Attorney General Rayfield and the coalition argue that the repeal is unlawful because the EPA has failed to provide a reasoned basis for it and failed to adequately consider developments in practices, processes and control technologies in its attempt to revert to outdated standards. The attorneys general are asking the court to determine that the rule is unlawful and must be reversed.
Joining Attorney General Rayfield in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin, along with the city of Chicago, the city of New York and Harris County, Texas.