They add that the decision could pose a risk to Kentucky families who depend on the river basin for drinking water.
Michael Washburn, executive director of the Kentucky Waterways Alliance, explained that the Trump administration has put the brakes on changes that would have helped reduce levels of arsenic, mercury, bromide, and other pollutants in the region’s waterways.
"That means for at least five more years, toxic pollution that doesn't have to be there will be flowing into these waters," he said, "these waters the Kentucky families drink from, recreate in and depend on every day."
Research has linked coal-plant pollution in drinking water to cancer, neurological damage and birth defects in children, and many other health issues.
Washburn said Kentucky communities will ultimately pay the price for the failure to protect drinking water.
"Instead of requiring these industries to clean up their own mess by pushing this rule up five years," she said, "it's moving the cost on to municipal water utilities and the families who pay for the water bills."
Coal-fired power plants are one of the largest sources of environmental pollution. According to Clean Water Action, each year, the industry dumps millions of pounds of toxic chemicals in the nation’s waterways.
