US Supreme Court restricts EPA's authority in reducing carbon emissions

ANKARA

US Supreme Court restricted the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) authority Thursday to reduce carbon emissions and set climate standards for power plants.

"(The) EPA claimed to discover an unheralded power representing a transformative expansion of its regulatory authority," the top court said in a 6-3 ruling. "(The) EPA has admitted that issues of electricity transmission, distribution, and storage are not within its traditional expertise."

The Supreme Court said Congress alone has the power to decide how American consumers would get their energy and Congress instead has the authority to set standards on greenhouse gas emissions for power plants.

The EPA's authority was based on a rule that it issued in 2015 during former President Barack Obama’s administration which said the "best system of emission reduction" for existing coal-fired power plants is requiring them to reduce their production of electricity or subsidize increased generation by natural gas, wind or solar sources, according to the top court.

The ruling is a major blow to the administration of President Joe Biden that wants to create a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035 and a net-zero emission economy no later than 2050, the White House said in April.