In April 2024,
Biden EPA Chief Michael Regan signed the Hazardous Organic National Emission
Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants rule, known as the HON rule, to
strengthen regulation of pollutants from chemical plants. The regulation called
for better fenceline air monitoring, more openness and public availability of
data, and lower thresholds for pollutants, some of which are known or likely
carcinogens. By one account, the region around petrochemical plants along the
Gulf Coast in Louisiana, an area known as “Cancer Alley,” has nearly 50 times
the national average cancer rate due to air pollution. That area is also home
to a majority of African-Americans, which makes it an environmental justice
issue, and one that has been considered so for a long time.
Beth Gardiner, a journalist
who specializes in air pollution and has written a book and many articles on
the subject, wrote an article for Grist explaining how the Trump EPA has
delayed compliance requirements for the rule and has otherwise weakened it. Dangerous
air pollutants emitted from chemical plants include chloroprene, ethylene
oxide, BTEX, and vinyl chloride. In 2025, Trump granted two-year exemptions
from the HON rule to more than 50 petrochemical facilities. In July 2026, he
issued 20 more temporary exemptions, and the EPA said it would propose a
rewrite of the regulation this fall. The rewrite will likely reduce
protections.
The HON rule:
“…requires petrochemical plants to upgrade their
pollution control equipment to reduce emissions of two hazardous chemicals:
ethylene oxide and chloroprene. It also mandates air monitors at plants’
fencelines to measure concentrations of those chemicals and four more —
benzene, ethylene dichloride, vinyl chloride, and 1,3-butadiene — and requires
operators to carry out necessary repairs if emissions exceed limits.”
“Tracey Woodruff, a Stanford University epidemiology and
population health professor who formerly worked on toxic assessments at the
EPA, said the pollutants covered by the HON rule are “the classic bad guys of
toxic chemicals,” compounds that raise risks for breast cancer, liver cancer,
leukemia, lymphoma, and reproductive problems. “We’ve known about their
toxicity for decades,” she said, and “they should have been more highly
regulated a long time ago.”
The rule also closes
loopholes for allowing these emissions during times of startup and shutdown,
such as before and after maintenance or big storms. These types of venting can
emit high amounts of pollutants. The rule covered 220 large petrochemical plants,
60% of which are in Texas and Louisiana. She notes that the Trump
administration used unusual means to justify its delay in implementing the
rule.
“In granting the postponements, Trump invoked a Clean
Air Act provision that environmental lawyers say has never been used: allowing
temporary exemptions to emissions rules if they are “in the country’s national
security interests” and if the technology required to comply with a regulation
is unavailable.”
They
basically argued that the rule puts too high a burden on the chemical industry
and hurts competition with foreign producers of the same products.
“The HON Rule imposes substantial burdens on chemical
manufacturers already operating under stringent regulations,” Trump’s exemption
proclamations said. “Maintaining a robust domestic chemical industry is vital
to safeguarding the supply chains that underpin our economy and to reducing the
Nation’s dependence on foreign control over materials critical to national
resilience.”
Apparently, they provided no
evidence other than such statements to justify the delays, which technically is
required by law. The American Chemistry Council did provide some detail:
“The American Chemistry Council, a trade group
representing petrochemical producers, said the exemptions “offer a pathway for
relief for some sources from some of the unrealistic timelines” in the HON
rule. It called the regulation “overly stringent” and said it “exceeds the
EPA’s statutory authority, disregards relevant scientific evidence, and imposes
some requirements without technological availability.”
“The EPA said in an emailed statement that all its
proposals on air toxics aimed to “protect American industry and supply chains,
while still minimizing Americans’ unnecessary exposure to hazardous
air pollutants.”
That statement certainly
suggests that the current EPA is prioritizing American industry over exposure
to hazards. Woodruff noted:
“The policy changes “will lead to people getting sicker
and dying,” she said. “This is exactly opposite of what this administration
claimed they wanted to do in terms of ‘Make America Healthy Again.’”
The EPA is trying to undo
other Biden air pollution rule moves as well, pretty much all of them. Some of
these relate to chemical plants.
“The EPA has also proposed undoing changes the Biden
administration made to strengthen a safety rule called the Risk Management
Program, which empowered workers dealing with hazardous substances to stop
operations they believe to be dangerous, and required chemical facilities to
prepare for natural disasters, undergo independent audits after accidents, and
share information with the public.”
Accidents are a major issue
as well, and that rule has requirements meant to prevent them and analyze them
in detail after they occur. Shiv Srivastava, policy
director at Fenceline Watch, a Houston environmental justice group, noted:
“Nationally, there were 131 accidents resulting in
reportable chemical releases last year. For those living near the Houston
area’s nearly 700 chemical plants, “there are constant explosions, there are
constant fires, there are constant black, dark plumes that linger over our
communities,” Srivastava said.
The EPA noted:
“Due to the varied, complex nature of chemical
facilities, the facility operator is in the best position to assess risks and
identify steps to mitigate these risks,” it said.
This is likely true, but
regulators need access and to be educated on the plant’s variable activities.
The public, those likely to be affected negatively by the emissions, also need
to be better informed about emissions during accidents as well as day-to-day
emissions. That is one HON requirement that the Trump EPA rolled back.
“Last year, the
administration also removed an online data tool the Biden administration had
created to give communities located near petrochemical plants information about
their operations, including their accident history, emergency response plans,
and the chemicals they handle. Srivastava said the tool’s loss cuts off
neighbors’ access to even the most basic information about nearby plants —
their names and locations, for example — making it hard for communities to even
begin preparing for accidents.”
References:
A
hard-won rule to cut chemical plant pollution is being unraveled. Beth Gardiner.
Grist. September 6, 2026. A hard-won rule to cut chemical plant
pollution is being unraveled
Biden-Harris
Administration Finalizes Stronger Clean Air Standards for Chemical Plants,
Lowering Cancer Risk and Advancing Environmental Justice. U.S. EPA. April 9,
2024. Biden-Harris
Administration Finalizes Stronger Clean Air Standards for Chemical Plants,
Lowering Cancer Risk and Advancing Environmental Justice | US EPA
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