Happy Thursday!
Well, it appears the saga which we
blogged about last November for the coal-fired and natural gas power plants,
and the plans the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency has for them was published
Thursday.
Did anyone
happen to read The Associated Press on Microsoft Start on April 25, 2024,
their article titled, “Strict new EPA rules would force coal-fired power plants
to capture emissions or shut down”? In
the article, it is speaking about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) and their new rules which were published Thursday which address fossil
fuel-fired power plants and their emissions which will affect the country’s
coal and natural gas power plants. The EPA will be implementing new restrictions
on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) coal and natural gas power
plants may release. With fossil fueled
power plants being a major contributor to climate change the EPA has drawn a line
in the sand, and these types of power plants have a D-Day of 2032 to clean up their
emissions or be mothballed by 2039. The
new rule has made restrictions on the amount of carbon dioxide fossil fuel-fired
power plants may release (limited to 10%) which mean they need to capture or mitigate
the rest with carbon capture and/or new technologies. The estimate of carbon emissions mitigated or
captured will be 1.38 billon metric tons by 2047 which will help the environment
as well as people’s health.
The EPA’s emission
power plant rule is only one of four rules which came down on Thursday to aid in
cleaning up our air, land, and sea, and they have various enforcement dates. The EPA has set restrictions on other
harmful irritants such as mercury and arsenic which are released in certain types
of coal-fired power plants. Lastly, the
EPA has issued rules in regard to coal-fired power plants which they need to
lower toxic wastewater pollution and manage how they store their coal ash in unlined
ponds. The new rules were in response to
man-made pollution and our responsibility to be good shepherds to our country
and caring for our air, land, and sea.
The new rules as
well as the incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act and other laws are in
response to the U.S.’s pledge to fight climate change and improve quality of
life for all Americans. The new rules
have already had responses from the industry and environmentalists. In the near future, we can see more of this
saga playing out; we will keep you posted.
If you would like to read more of The Associated Press article in
Microsoft Start, please click the link: Strict new EPA rules would force coal-fired power plants to capture emissions or shutdown (msn.com).
If you would
like to read more details on what the EPA and their new rules to fossil fuel-fired
power plants; please click the link: Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Suite of Standards to Reduce Pollution from FossilFuel-Fired Power Plants | US EPA.
Let us help you
reduce your emissions by seeing what’s underneath your feet, or by transporting
your emissions underground to geological formations somewhere else, we are here
to help! Contact us via email in the
blog and check out our ESC's website!
We hope you have a wonderful evening and a great rest of
your week!
**Disclaimer: You may be charged a fee to read the Associated
Press’ article. **