EPA UNVEILS NEW EMISSIONS STANDARD

EPA to propose cutting carbon dioxide emissions from coal plants 30% by 2030

Juliet Eilperin and Steve Mufson, June 2, 2014 (Washington Post)

“…[The Environmental Protection Agency regulation] would cut carbon dioxide emissions from existing coal plants by up to 30 percent by 2030 compared with 2005 levels…Under the draft rule, the EPA would analyze four options that states and utilities would have to meet the new standard, with different approaches to energy efficiency, shifting from coal to natural gas, investing in renewable energy and making power plant upgrades…Other compliance methods could include offering discounts to encourage consumers to shift electricity use to off-peak hours…

“…The rule represents one of the most significant steps the federal government has ever taken to curb the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions…[and] is sure to spark a major political and legal battle…[E]nvironmental and public health activists have been pressing Obama to use his executive authority to impose carbon limits on the power sector, which accounts for 38 percent of the nation’s carbon dioxide emissions. Opponents, including coal producers, some utilities and many Republicans, argue that the EPA is using a novel legal approach to demand stringent greenhouse gas cuts that are not achievable given current technology…” click here for more

Tweet