Trump overturns regulations related to copper smelters during the Biden era, loosening regulations for domestic copper producers in the United States.

On Friday, US President Donald Trump overturned an air pollution regulation from the Biden administration that had imposed stricter limits on emissions from copper smelters. The "copper rule" was finalized in May 2024, requiring smelters to control emissions of pollutants such as lead, arsenic, mercury, benzene, and dioxins based on updated federal air quality standards. Trump's announcement granted a two-year compliance waiver to the affected fixed pollution sources. The White House stated that this move would help to reduce regulatory burdens on domestic copper producers and enhance US mineral security. The White House stated when announcing this change: "Imposing these requirements on such a limited and already burdened domestic industry could accelerate more closures of factories, weaken the national industrial base, undermine mineral independence, and increase reliance on foreign-controlled processing capacity." The announcement specifically mentioned the only two copper smelters in the US, one operated by Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX.US) and the other by Rio Tinto plc Sponsored ADR group (RIO.US). The order applies to the Freeport-McMoRan copper smelting plant, but its impact on the Rio Tinto plc Sponsored ADR plant is currently unclear. Both companies did not immediately respond to requests for comments. Earlier this year, Trump signed an executive order designating copper as a critical material needed for national defense, infrastructure, and emerging technologies including Clean Energy Fuels Corp. and electric vehicles. This order led to a Section 232 investigation to determine if copper imports pose a threat to US national security, particularly considering the US's reliance on a few foreign suppliers. After the review, the Trump administration imposed a 50% tariff on some imported copper and mandated that an increasing percentage of high-quality scrap copper produced domestically must be sold in the domestic market.