What Is an Energy Emergency? The Trump Administration Says It Alone Decides.
Key takeaways
- Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Mich.
- Campbell power plant on the banks of Lake Michigan, the first of six aging coal and oil plants that Energy Secretary Chris Wright has blocked from planned retirement.
- The state of Michigan and environmentalists argue that, under President Donald Trump, the Department of Energy has swept aside the procedures and safeguards of the 91-year-old Federal Power Act.
Why this matters: environmental and climate reporting with long-term consequences.
May 15, 2026 Share This Article Republish. A view of the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Mich. Credit: Consumers Energy Related Western Lawmakers Move To Weaken Clean Air Act and Shield Fossil Fuel Companies From Climate Lawsuits Unpacking Trump’s Use of Emergency Powers to Prop Up Coal New Lawsuit Aims to Halt Expansion of a Montana Coal Mine Blamed for Drying up the Land Above It Share This Article Republish Most Popular As El Niño Approaches, Scientists Predict Fierce Heatwaves, Wildfires and Floods Plugging Away at the Millions of Derelict Oil and Gas Wells in the US After a Century Powering Its Growth With Dams, Seattle Settles With Tribes That Lost Their River The Trump administration on Friday defended its legal authority to order coal plants to stay open, arguing before a panel of federal judges that it alone has the power to decide whether an energy emergency exists.
The case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is focused on the J.H. Campbell power plant on the banks of Lake Michigan, the first of six aging coal and oil plants that Energy Secretary Chris Wright has blocked from planned retirement. The precedent the case sets could be far-reaching.
The state of Michigan and environmentalists argue that, under President Donald Trump, the Department of Energy has swept aside the procedures and safeguards of the 91-year-old Federal Power Act. That’s the law spelling out that utilities, states and regional planning authorities decide whether electricity resources are adequate, with input from the public.