This Week at the Environmental Protection Agency — week of May 25, 2026

This week the EPA published 23 actions, most of them routine approvals or updates to state air quality plans. The changes most likely to affect households involve refrigerant rules that influence the price of cooling equipment, along with new residue limits for pesticides on dried spices and soybeans.

Refrigerants and chemical oversight

• EPA proposed exempting refrigerated road trucks and intermodal containers from HFC leak repair requirements. For fleet operators, this removes the cost of tracking and fixing leaks in mobile cooling units; it does not change broader climate goals.
• EPA finalized a rule modifying how it enforces the HFC phase-down under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act, easing specific restrictions that were driving up prices. Because HFCs are used in grocery store coolers and home air conditioners, the change can affect new equipment prices and maintenance costs for HVAC customers.
• EPA finalized “significant new use” designations for certain chemicals, requiring companies to notify the agency 90 days in advance of manufacturing or using them in ways not already covered by restrictions. EPA estimates preparation costs at about $45,000 for large businesses and $14,500 for small ones.

Food and agriculture

• EPA set legal tolerance limits for residues of the fungicide propylene oxide on sesame seeds and several dried spices, including turmeric, ginger, bell peppers, and non-bell peppers. The practical impact falls on producers and manufacturers who must keep products within the new limits.
• EPA finalized exemptions from pesticide residue tolerances for three insecticidal proteins in genetically modified soybeans. This clears the way for the crops to be sold and consumed without violating food safety laws, and confirms the safety framework for the new varieties.

Ozone status for major metro areas

• EPA updated its records to restore a Moderate nonattainment designation for the Detroit area under the 2015 ozone standard, after a court vacated the previous redesignation. Michigan must continue meeting federal ozone planning requirements in the region.
• EPA separately proposed approving Michigan’s request to redesignate Detroit as meeting the ozone standard, which would later remove nonattainment-related federal requirements if finalized.
• EPA issued a Clean Data Determination for the Baltimore area, finding it meets the ozone standard based on 2022–2024 monitoring data. Certain federal planning and contingency requirements are suspended while the air continues to meet the standard, and the area keeps its nonattainment status.

Approvals for specific facilities

• EPA proposed approving New York’s emission limits for three oil-fired generators at the Big Six Towers facility in Queens, ensuring the engines meet federal standards without new equipment requirements.
• EPA approved Indiana’s revision allowing Keystone Automotives Industries to use an oil cover on degreaser tanks as an acceptable VOC control method, recognizing the facility as compliant under the Clean Air Act.
• EPA approved a Pennsylvania correction to the engine timing rule for the Philadelphia Gas Works Richmond Plant, a technical fix that clarifies compliance without changing emission limits.
• EPA approved New York’s emission limits for boilers at the Calpine JFK Energy Center, which serves John F. Kennedy International Airport, confirming the current controls meet Reasonably Available Control Technology requirements.
• EPA approved New York’s nitrogen oxide emission limits for the Athens Generating Plant, incorporating state permit conditions into the federally enforceable State Implementation Plan.

State air quality plan updates

• EPA proposed reinstating Ohio’s Air Nuisance Rule, in place since 1974, which broadly prohibits emissions that harm public health or property. The action determines whether state regulators can address vague pollution like odors, dust, and fumes.
• EPA proposed updating federal records to reflect South Carolina’s 2024 split of its health and environmental agency into two departments, clarifying which state entity handles compliance without changing requirements.
• EPA extended the comment period for a proposed rule on Maryland waste combustor air standards from May 29 to June 12, 2026, giving interested parties two more weeks to comment.
• EPA finalized a partial approval of Hawaii’s regional haze plan, approving most of the submission while disapproving elements that would force power plant shutdowns. Hawaii must revise its haze strategy in a way that respects existing contracts and constitutional protections.
• EPA approved Virginia’s removal of two outdated air rules covering refineries and appliance coating, since those industries are no longer active in the state.
• EPA approved South Carolina’s plan for controlling emissions from commercial and industrial solid waste incinerators, making state rules federally enforceable.
• EPA approved the District of Columbia’s negative declarations, certifying that no large municipal waste combustors, oil and gas facilities, or utility generating units operate in the District.
• EPA updated Idaho’s State Implementation Plan records to reflect rules in effect as of January 6, 2026, and corrected a typographical error from a prior approval.
• EPA approved six California air quality rules from three regional districts covering oil and gas operations, making the local controls enforceable under federal law.

Coal ash permitting

• EPA reopened the public comment period for its proposed federal permitting system for coal combustion residuals, extending the deadline by 30 days. The action affects compliance costs and planning for coal plants in states without their own approved coal ash programs.

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This weekly agency digest is generated from federal records (the Federal Register and Congress.gov) and summarized in plain English. It may simplify or omit detail — follow the linked official sources before relying on any item. Part of The Boring Parts.