Environmental groups immediately sued the EPA over its plans to repeal climate rules for power plants, warning of devastating consequences nationwide. The rollback threatens to increase carbon pollution from power plants at a time when climate impacts are already intensifying across the US.

Brett Korte, a senior staff attorney for Clean Wisconsin, said the repeal would worsen existing climate effects in Wisconsin, including warmer winters, hotter summers, and more frequent extreme weather events. He noted that Wisconsin has the ninth-highest death rate from particulate matter pollution from fossil fuel combustion, and EPA abandoning its regulatory role would make these problems worse.

Vickie Patton, general counsel for the Environmental Defense Fund, criticized the EPA's timing, saying communities will experience unnecessary deaths if the court does not intervene. She warned that increasing power plant climate pollution now will cause thousands of premature deaths and billions in additional health costs.

Patton stated that legal action aims to ensure the EPA fulfills its responsibilities under the Clean Air Act. Thousands of Americans have submitted comments on the rule change, and the EPA will hold a public hearing at the end of the month, with a comment period extending through October.