US appeals court rejects Trump EPA bid to roll back soot pollution limit
WASHINGTON - In a blow to the Trump administration's deregulatory agenda, a federal appeals court on Friday rejected the Environmental Protection Agency's attempt to roll back soot pollution standards set in 2024.
The decision upholds the tightened National Ambient Air Quality Standards for small particulates, called PM2.5, set by former President Joe Biden's administration.
After Biden's EPA changed the annual limit for PM2.5 from 12 to 9 micrograms per cubic meter, a collection of industry groups and some states challenged the new standards in court. Under Trump, the EPA switched its position from defending the standards to asking a panel of judges to scrap them. Instead, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled 3-0 to uphold the limits.
These thresholds are the health-based standard for small particulate matter nationwide. In places that exceed this limit, local and state officials have to develop plans and solutions for reducing that pollution, which may involve targeted industry action.
The EPA is reviewing the decision, according to agency spokesperson Carolyn Holran.
There are many sources of PM2.5, ranging from coal-fired power plants to wildfires. These small particles are dangerous because they can cause adverse health effects when ingested or inhaled. Biden's EPA estimated its stricter standard could prevent up to 4,500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays.
Environmentalists who defended the standards in court cheered the recent decision, hailing it as a public health victory.
"This is just incredibly harmful pollution," said Peter Zalzal, a member of the Environmental Defense Fund's Domestic Climate and Air legal team. "The court's decision affirming these really common sense and vital health protections is good news for all Americans."
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This story was originally published June 26, 2026 at 7:35 PM.