The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that it plans to begin developing standards for limiting the emissions of individual coal and oil power plants and refineries. The EPA previously said it will begin using emissions as a criterion for issuing new permits for power plants from the start of next year using what the agency called a "common-sense" approach rather than any specific standards.
It's expected the more stringent pollution standards for power plants won't be finalized until the middle of next year. Projections are that they would take effect in mid-2012, with those for refineries implemented approximately six months later. Most industry observers predict the EPA's authority to regulate emissions will be challenged in the courts during that period.
The EPA estimates that emissions from power plants and refineries together make up about 40 per cent of US carbon emissions that the agency says contribute to global warming.
Read more...
No comments:
Post a Comment