By MATTHEW DALY (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency issued a rule on Thursday that would require coal-fired power plants to capture smokestack emissions or shut down.
The Biden administration is implementing new restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric plants, aiming to reduce pollution from the power sector, which is the second-largest contributor to climate change. . The rules are a key part of President Joe Biden’s commitment to eliminate carbon pollution from the electricity sector by 2035and economy-wide by 2050. The rule was part of four measures aimed at coal and natural gas plants to provide certainty to the power industry and encourage them to transition to a clean energy economy. The measures include requirements to decrease toxic wastewater pollutants from coal-fired plants and to safely manage coal ash in unlined storage ponds. EPA Administrator Michael Regan stated that the rules will reduce pollution, improve public health, and support the reliable supply of electricity in America.
“One of the biggest environmental challenges facing our nation is man-made pollution that damages our air, our water and our land,” Regan said in a speech at Howard University. “Not only is this pollution a major threat to public health — it’s pushing our planet to the brink.”
Regan referred to the power plant rules as “a defining moment” for his agency as it aims to “build a cleaner and healthier future for all of us.”
Industry groups and Republican-leaning states are likely to challenge the plan, as they have accused the Democratic administration of overstepping on environmental regulations and warned of a potential reliability crisis for the electric grid.
Environmental organizations praised the EPA’s latest action as urgently needed to protect against the devastating effects of climate change.
The plan is expected to face opposition from industry groups and Republican-leaning states, which have criticized the Democratic administration for being too aggressive in environmental regulations and have raised concerns about potential reliability issues for the electric grid. The rules issued Thursday are among at least six EPA rules limiting power plant emissions and wastewater pollution.
Environmental groups welcomed the EPA’s recent action as a necessary step to guard against the harmful effects of climate change.
The power plant rule is the first time the federal government has restricted carbon dioxide emissions from existing coal-fired power plants. It would also require future electric plants fueled by coal or gas to control up to 90% of their carbon pollution. The new standards will prevent 1.38 billion metric tons of carbon pollution through 2047, which is equal to the annual emissions of 328 million gas cars, according to the EPA, and will bring hundreds of billions of dollars in climate and health benefits, resulting in reduced premature deaths, asthma cases and lost work or school days. Coal plants that plan to stay open beyond 2039 would need to cut or capture 90% of their carbon dioxide emissions by 2032, according to the EPA. Plants expecting to retire by 2039 would face a less strict standard but still would need to capture some emissions. Coal plants set to retire by 2032 would not be subject to the new rules. Rich Nolan, leader of the National Mining Association, stated that the EPA is steadily taking apart the dependability of the U.S. electric grid through the most recent regulations.
He blamed Biden, Regan and other officials for disregarding the actual energy situation and forcing the closure of well-operating coal plants, which repeatedly help during peak demand. The consequences of this careless plan will affect all Americans across the country.
Regan rejected the idea that the rules were intended to close down the coal industry, but he admitted during the proposal of the power plant rule last year that some coal retirements would occur.
The plan depends on technologies to control carbon pollution that the industry itself has confirmed to be available, Regan stated. He mentioned that multiple power companies are pursuing carbon capture and storage projects for the power sector, which are viable today.
In 2021, coal contributed about 16% of U.S. electricity, a decrease from around 45% in 2010. Natural gas accounts for approximately 43% of U.S. electricity, and the rest comes from nuclear energy and renewables like wind, solar and hydropower.
Dan Brouilette, leader of the Edison Electric Institute representing U.S. investor-owned electric companies, expressed his disappointment that the EPA did not address the concerns they raised about carbon capture and storage. He added that while promising, the technology is not yet ready for full-scale, economy-wide deployment.
The initial rules included measures to reduce emissions from existing natural gas plants, but Regan
postponed that part of the regulations until at least next year.
He mentioned wanting to address complaints from environmental justice groups about the earlier plan allowing too much toxic air pollution that disproportionately harms low-income neighborhoods near power plants, refineries and other industrial sites. Even so, the rules issued Thursday complete a series of major actions by the Biden administration to reduce carbon pollution, according to David Doniger, a climate and clean energy expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council.The first and most important action was the passage of the 2022 climate law, officially known as the Inflation Reduction Act, followed by separate EPA rules targeting tailpipe emissions from
methane emissions from oil and gas drilling. This includes the biggest reductions in carbon pollution to date and will move the country toward eliminating carbon emissions, Doniger stated. The country still faces challenges in eliminating carbon from transportation, heavy industry and more, said Abigail Dillen, president of the environmental group Earthjustice. cars and trucks and She added that progress can't be made on any of it without cleaning up the power plants. Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, called the EPA rule illegal, unrealistic, and unattainable, and mentioned that it was likely to face a legal challenge.
control the amount of carbon pollution allowed under the Clean Air Act
, Matheson stated.
“This flood of new EPA regulations disregards our country’s ongoing electric reliability difficulties and is the incorrect approach at a crucial time for our country’s energy future,” said Matheson, whose association represents 900 local electric cooperatives across the country. The EPA rules would not require use of equipment to capture and store carbon emissions — a technology that is expensive and still being developed. Instead, the agency would set limits on carbon dioxide pollution that plant operators would have to meet. Some natural gas plants could start blending gas with other fuel sources that do not emit carbon, although specific actions would be left to the industry.Nevertheless, the regulation is anticipated to result in increased use of carbon capture equipment. Only
a few projects
are operating in the country despite years of research.
The EPA also tightened rules aimed at reducing wastewater pollution from coal-fired power plants and preventing harm from toxic pits of coal ash, a waste byproduct of burning coal. Coal ash contains cancer-causing substances like arsenic and mercury that can seep into the ground, drinking water and nearby rivers and streams, harming people and killing fish. The waste is commonly stored in ponds near power plants. The EPA issued rules in 2015 to control active and new ponds at operating facilities, seven years after in Kingston, Tennessee, that flooded two rivers with toxic waste and destroyed property.
Environmental groups contested that rule, arguing it left a large amount of coal ash waste unregulated by the federal government. The rule issued Thursday compels owners to securely close inactive coal ash ponds and clean up contamination.
A separate rule will decrease toxic wastewater pollution by 660 million pounds annually, according to federal officials. It’s a reversal of the Trump administration’s push to relax coal plant wastewater standards. a disaster Associated Press writer Michael Phillis in St. Louis contributed to this story.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the EPA at
https://apnews.com/hub/us-environmental-protection-agency
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Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan says new rules that would force power plants fueled by coal or natural gas to capture smokestack emissions or shut down are targeting pollution that’s “pushing our planet to the brink.” The new limits unveiled Thursday on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel-powered electric plants are the Biden administration’s most ambitious effort yet to roll back planet-warming pollution from the power sector. The rules are a key part of President Joe Biden’s pledge to eliminate carbon pollution from the electricity sector by 2035 and economy-wide by 2050. The National Mining Association claims the EPA is “dismantling the reliability of the U.S. electric grid.″
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the EPA at https://apnews.com/hub/us-environmental-protection-agency.
