Bill Wehrum, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official in charge of revising power plant rules and revamping vehicle emission standards who came under scrutiny for ethics allegations, will step down in days, he said Wednesday.
Wehrum, the head for air and radiation at the agency and one of its top officials, told staff in an email he will resign on Sunday. He said he was proud of the administration’s efforts “due in part to the clear direction provided by the president and the dedication of Administrator (Andrew) Wheeler to accomplishing the agency’s mission.”
Wheeler said while he knew Wehrum would eventually step down, the departure date “has still come too soon.” But he applauded Wehrum for finalizing last week the Affordable Clean Energy regulation, a replacement for the Obama administration’s signature climate regulation that targeted carbon emissions from power plants. The change, part of the Trump administration policy to slash regulations and raise production of fossil fuels, was a boost to coal-fired plants.
Wehrum and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have been working to finalize a massive rewrite of vehicle emissions standards to freeze fuel-efficiency requirements at 2020 levels, according to Reuters.