Cybersecurity firm SpyCloud analyzed over 66,000 public-facing systems tied to roughly 10,000 EPA-registered water and wastewater organizations and discovered that infostealer malware had already harvested login credentials from 1,787 of them. At least 250 of those organizations had exposed credentials that could grant access to operational networks controlling physical pumps and water flow. In one case, malware on a device belonging to a metering technology vendor exposed passwords for 167 utilities that relied on its services.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-09-22
The US Environmental Protection Agency announced on September 14 that it is rescinding the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards, which had required coal plants and new gas plants to capture 90 percent of their carbon emissions or close by 2039. The agency says the rollback will save industry $370 million in compliance costs, but has not disclosed the resulting public health toll.
text.hrw.org
· 2026-09-20
A coalition including the American Lung Association, American Public Health Association, Clean Air Council, Clean Wisconsin, Environmental Defense Fund and NRDC has filed a petition asking the DC Circuit Court of Appeals to review the EPA's recent repeal of climate rules for power plants. The groups argue the repeal violates the Clean Air Act and could lead to thousands of preventable deaths by leaving the largest industrial source of climate pollution unregulated.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-09-17
The EPA finalized a rule dismantling most of the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards for power plants, claiming the Clean Air Act doesn't authorize requiring pollution control technology it deems unproven. The agency also proposed eliminating all remaining greenhouse gas emissions requirements for power plants, asserting their emissions have no meaningful climate impact.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-09-15
The Trump administration's EPA, led by Lee Zeldin, has finalized plans to eliminate federal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from coal and natural gas power plants, rolling back rules established under the Biden and Obama administrations. A companion rule would also try to block future administrations from reinstating such restrictions on power plant emissions.
futurism.com
· 2026-09-15
The Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency has proposed eliminating federal restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from coal- and oil-fired power plants. The agency's filing goes further than a simple rollback, seemingly inviting judges to rule that the EPA lacks authority to regulate such emissions from the power sector at all in the future.
gizmodo.com
· 2026-09-15
The EPA is seeking to rescind a Biden-era rule requiring power plants to cut most greenhouse gas emissions by 2039 or shut down. It is also arguing that the agency lacks authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate such emissions, claiming without scientific support that they pose no threat to public health or the environment.
engadget.com
· 2026-09-14
The Environmental Protection Agency unveiled a plan to eliminate remaining federal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, finalizing the repeal of Biden-era rules and proposing removal of related emissions standards. The agency argues climate pollution's health impacts are too diffuse to regulate, even as electricity demand rises from AI, EVs, and manufacturing growth.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-14
A group of former EPA officials, working through the Environmental Protection Network, released a report identifying 30 federal actions since January 2025 that they say weaken environmental protections to speed AI data center construction. They argue this has pushed data centers toward dirtier power sources, worsening pollution exposure even for people who don't live near the facilities, and are calling on Trump to adopt a 'Data Center Health Protection Pledge.'
theverge.com
· 2026-09-12
The EPA is proposing to eliminate a federal rule requiring states to notify the public and accept comments before approving air-pollution permits for industrial facilities, including data centers and the power plants built to supply them. A separate EPA proposal from last month would also allow developers to begin construction before permits are finalized. These changes come as data centers expand rapidly across the rural South, disproportionately affecting Black communities.
capitalbnews.org
· 2026-09-11
The EPA has proposed eliminating a federal rule that requires states to notify the public and accept comments before issuing air pollution permits for data centers and other industrial facilities. States would still be allowed to hold public comment periods voluntarily, but would no longer be required to do so as a condition of granting permits. The proposal comes amid growing local opposition to the rapid construction of AI-driven data centers nationwide.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-09-03
The EPA issued guidance stating that the Clean Air Act's Acid Rain Program does not apply to 'islanded' power generation facilities—those not connected to the public electricity grid. The move is aimed at making it easier for companies to build dedicated power plants for data centers without triggering certain federal pollution compliance requirements tied to grid-connected generation.
epa.gov
· 2026-08-28
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