Tuesday, July 06, 2010

EPA issues tighter pollution limits on power plants

Amid all the talk of a climate-and-energy bill that now seems unlikely to pass, and the alternative of a carbon-dioxide regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA is moving ahead with stricter limits on "old fashioned" air pollutants from power plants, such as sulfur dioxide (SO2), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and particulates, or soot.

Assistant EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said the proposed rule would reduce SO2 emissions by 71 percent and NOx emissions by 52 percent from 2005 levels, reports Gabriel Nelson of Environment & Energy News. Labeled a "transport" rule, it is aimed at reducing accumulations of the pollutants in the northeastern U.S., making "it harder for those states to meet federal standards for particulate matter and ground-level ozone," Nelson writes. (Subscription required)

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