Presidential orders to prop up coal companies would increase pollution, damage public lands and raise power bills 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 9, 2025

Contact:
Molly Moore, Director of Program Communications, molly@appvoices.org, (828) 278-4076

On April 8, 2025, President Trump signed four executive orders aimed at propping up declining coal-fired power plants and reducing environmental protections for communities impacted by coal plants and mining.

These orders seek to extend the lifetime of coal-fired power plants past their scheduled closures in the name of national security, undermine state and local authority to create a healthy environment for residents, and focus on powering new artificial intelligence and data centers with polluting and outdated coal power. 

“Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry and Amending Executive Order 14241” attempts to open up dangerous opportunities for coal companies to skirt environmental protections and remove barriers to mining on public lands across Appalachia as they seek to profit from a friendly administration that is ignoring the failing economics of generating additional electricity from coal. Specifically, this executive order:

• Defines coal as a “mineral” in line with Executive Order 14241, “Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production,” in an attempt to entitle coal to all of the expedited permitting processes for “minerals” and Defense Production Act support under that order. The order also instructs the Secretaries of the Interior and Energy to determine if coal used to make steel, or “metallurgical coal,” can be classified as a critical mineral, further reducing environmental regulations on its mining.
• Requires a report from the Departments of the Interior, Agriculture and Energy that identifies coal reserves on public lands and proposes policies to improve mining access to them, including designating coal mining as the primary land use of the identified public lands. Appalachia is home to many pristine national forests managed by the U.S. Forest Service at the Department of Agriculture that will be evaluated for mining access with “emergency authority,” in an effort to circumvent protections outlined in bedrock environmental laws. The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act prohibits coal mining in national forests with very few exceptions, although this is already being violated in West Virginia’s Monongahela National Forest.
• Instructs federal agencies to conduct a whole-of-government review to identify and possibly rescind “any guidance, regulations, programs, and policies…that seek to transition the Nation away from coal production and electricity generation.” This vague language seeks to give federal agencies free reign in targeting policies that communities use for building renewable energy projects that lower electricity costs and keep their air clean.

Acting upon a previous executive order, the Department of the Interior also announced plans yesterday to scrap the Ten Day Notice rule, which allows community members impacted by coal mining operations to appeal to federal inspectors when state regulators turn a blind eye. The administration intends to rewrite the rule with the goal of “providing stability to the coal industry” at the expense of the rights of individuals who are harmed by coal mining in their communities. Appalachian Voices and our partners have successfully used the Ten Day Notice process to ensure that mines are reclaimed, that water pollution is acknowledged and addressed, and that public land protections are honored.

One of Trump’s orders also seeks to push back the deadline for power companies to comply with last year’s updated Mercury and Air Toxics Standards from 2027 to 2029. Mercury is a toxin that increases the risk of developmental defects in infants and contributes to heart diseases and other health problems. This updated rule would reduce mercury and other toxic emissions by 70%, and attempts to delay it would leave communities unprotected for longer.

These orders follow recent federal actions that undermine mine safety. Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency website lists the termination of 29 leases for Mine Safety and Health Administration offices across the country, and it’s unclear what this means for inspectors who work out of those offices. Additionally, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. has cut the staff of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health by two-thirds, reportedly eliminating the division that offers free, confidential black lung screenings for coal workers.

Statement from Willie Dodson, Appalachian Voices Coal Impacts Program Manager:
“The Trump administration’s executive orders seeking to recklessly expedite mine permitting, combined with prior actions to decimate federal mine safety and health programs for coal workers, if successful, would be a disaster for Appalachia and other coal communities across the country. Their attempt to keep uneconomic coal plants running would mean higher electric bills, and opening up mining on public lands would decimate precious places and hurt the region’s $60 billion tourism economy. These measures attack worker safety and our health, our public lands and our prosperity, all to pad the pockets of coal and power plant executives.”