Industry groups representing hundreds of chemical and petrochemical manufacturers are seeking blanket exemptions from federal requirements to reduce emissions of toxic chemicals such as mercury, arsenic and benzene.

The request by the American Chemistry Council and the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers comes as the Trump administration offers industrial polluters a chance for exemptions from rules imposed by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has set up an electronic mailbox to allow regulated companies to request a two-year presidential exemption under the Clean Air Act to a host of Biden-era rules.

The chemistry council and the petrochemical group say in a letter to the EPA that regulation of the chemical industry is supposed to be based on sound science and “reflect a reasonable assessment of the risks and benefits involved.”