by Brianna Crandall — March 18, 2011—In response to a court deadline, on March 16 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed the first-ever national standards for mercury, arsenic and other toxic air pollution from power plants. The new power plant mercury and air toxics standards, which reportedly eliminate 20 years of uncertainty across industry, would require many power plants to install widely available, proven pollution control technologies to cut harmful emissions of mercury, arsenic, chromium, nickel and acid gases.
EPA notes that power plants are the largest remaining source of several toxic air pollutants, responsible for half of mercury and more than half of acid gas emissions in the United States. Currently, more than half of all coal-fired power plants already deploy the widely available pollution control technologies that allow them to meet these standards. Once final, these standards will ensure the remaining coal-fired plants take similar steps.
The updated standards will provide a first-ever level playing field for all power plants across the country, ensure that they play by the same rules, and provide more certainty to business, says EPA. The proposed rule provides up to four years for facilities to meet the standards and, once fully implemented, will prevent 91 percent of mercury in coal from being released into the air.
