The Trump administration is allowing industrial sources to request an exemption on critical clean air rules that limit emissions of hazardous air pollutants. ELPC and local partners are calling out two Indiana steel mills, U.S. Steel and Cleveland Cliffs, to come clean and say publicly if they sought exemptions. Additionally, the Trump EPA announced exemptions for coal plants to avoid the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) that were set to become stronger in 2027, including Baldwin, Kincaid, Newton, and Powerton in Illinois.
ELPC CEO & Executive Director Howard Learner said, “the Trump administration has created an illegal special exemption by which polluters can go to the president and request a ‘get out of jail free’ card when it comes to the Clean Air Act. That’s legally irresponsible; it’s bad policy, and it will really harm people as a result of more pollution.”
While D.C. may be retreating from environmental protections, ELPC isn’t backing down within the Midwest. In a new Chicago Tribune op-ed ELPC CEO & Executive Director Howard Learner outlines six actionable steps that creates a roadmap for state and local action in Illinois.
The U.S. EPA and Army Corps of Engineers recently announced plans to weaken the Clean Water Act’s definition of WOTUS, which would remove protections for many of America’s streams and wetlands. These waterways are already vulnerable after the U.S. Supreme Court’s misguided Sackett decision in 2024.
ELPC and allies, including four Michigan Tribes, are asking the Michigan Supreme Court to consider the Line 5 tunnel project and overturn its allowance. ELPC is also pushing back on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ recent announcement of emergency fast-tracking the permitting process of their part of Enbridge’s permit needs for the tunnel project.
After decades of advocacy by ELPC and other groups, the City of Chicago introduced the Hazel M. Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance. This ordinance would reform the industrial siting practices that have exacerbated environmental disparities along industrial corridors on the South and West Sides.
Founded in 1993, the Environmental Law & Policy Center is the Midwest's leading environmental legal advocacy organization. We advocate, innovate, and litigate to protect the Midwest's environment from the Great Lakes to the Great Plains.
