Claims that implementing the Clean Power Plan during judicial review would cause irreparable harm to states are unsubstantiated, according to a discussion paper released Wednesday by Resources for the Future. Opponents of the Clean Power Plan, which requires states to develop action plans to meet federally set greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals, have suggested that if the rule is implemented while it undergoes judicial review states will be strong-armed into making decisions that might harm their economies by moving away from coal-fired energy production.
If states are forced to comply with the Clean Power Plan before it is deemed legal by the court, they may have to make lasting, costly decisions about their energy mixes, switching to costlier renewable energy and shutting down coal plants. If the regulation is later overturned by the courts these changes will already be locked in, opponents say.
In February to Supreme Court halted implementation of the Clean Power Plan until the conclusion of a massive lawsuit filed against the rule. To be granted a stay, the petitioners must show they are likely to incur irreparable harm if the stay is not granted and that they are likely to win the overarching case. The Supreme Court, by a vote of 5-4, indicated that it believed the petition for a stay passed that two-part test.
Resources for the Future isn’t so sure. The report notes ongoing trends that have already contributed to and continue to contribute to a decline in the use of coal, including low natural gas prices, increasing use of renewables, and other unrelated policies. “Because of these trends, most analysts project zero new coal-fired capacity to come online for the foreseeable future, even if there were no CPP. Finally, other environmental regulations have increased the cost of burning coal, but these regulations have had a smaller effect on the coal sector than have natural gas prices,” according to the paper.
“Claims of irreparable harm to the coal sector during courts’ reviews are unsubstantiated. Any retirements of coal-fired plants or closures of coal mines caused by the CPP would occur well after the litigation ends, even in the absence of the litigation,” the paper concludes.
