An EPA proposal to (nearly) stop power plant climate pollution
Author: Jeff Brady
"The EPA's proposed rule sends an unequivocal signal to American power plant operators: the era of unlimited carbon pollution is over," wrote Dan Lashof, U.S. Director at the World Resources Institute, in a statement responding to the proposal.
The regulations are based on technologies that capture and then store deep underground 90% of carbon dioxide from coal and gas-fired plants. But some facilities that plan to shut down in coming years or that operate at less than 20% of their capacity would be subject to less stringent requirements. Those could include adding cleaner hydrogen to natural gas to limit its climate-warming effects.
Environmental groups welcomed the rules, which are almost certain to face opposition and a legal challenge from the fossil fuel industry and its allies. "EPA's proposal relies on proven, readily available technologies to limit carbon pollution and seizes the momentum already underway in the power sector to move toward a cleaner future," said EPA Administrator Michael Regan.
The regulations also would help the U.S. meet its obligations under the 2015 Paris climate agreement, and they would be crucial in meeting President Biden's goal of zeroing out carbon pollution from the electricity sector by 2035.