The EPA proposed a new rule today seeking to tighten regulations on coal-fired power plants and mercury pollution, building on the Biden administration's effort to crack down on pollution from industry, power generation, and other sectors.
EPA described the proposed rulemaking as the most significant update to date to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) since its introduction in 2012. The proposed rule seeks a further 67% emissions reduction limit for “filterable particulate matter” in existing coal-fired power plants, and a 70% reduction in mercury emissions from lignite-fired power sources.
Lignite-fired power plants represent about 30% of the mercury emissions generated by the U.S. power sector. EPA officials said today that their proposed rule would effectively bring the emissions limit for lignite plants into alignment with emissions already required for other coal-fired plants in the U.S. It would also reduce non-mercury pollutants such as nickel, arsenic, and lead pollutants at non-lignite plants, and would update a national monitoring system for coal-fired plants to ensure they are in compliance with the emissions limits.
They projected the rule would add between $2.4 billion to $3 billion in benefits over a 10-year period beginning in 2028, including up to $1.9 billion in health benefits and $1.4 billion in climate benefits.
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee’s top Republican, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, took aim at the proposed rule, accusing the administration of waging “war” on coal and other reliable energy sources that help provide baseload power in the U.S.
“Despite agreeing with the Trump administration that existing controls on coal plants under the MATS Rule protect the public with an ample margin of safety, the Biden administration has again put politics over sound policy,” she said. “With one job-killing regulation after another, the EPA continues to threaten the livelihoods of those in West Virginia and other energy-producing communities across the country.” Read more from Breanne here.