US environment agency proposes loosening limits on carbon emissions from new power plants

Abstract

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced plans to weaken the greenhouse-gas emissions standard for new, modified or reconstructed power plants. The proposed changes, released on 6 December, would replace regulations that effectively require any new or substantially modified coal-fired power plant to be equipped with the technology to capture and store carbon dioxide emissions. Opponents of the regulations, put in place under President Barack Obama, have argued that carbon-capture technology is too expensive and not commercially viable. The EPA's latest proposal is based on “the latest technological information, not wishful thinking”, said Bill Wehrum, the agency's assistant administrator for the office of air and radiation, in a statement. The plan is the latest attempt by the administration of President Donald Trump to roll back climate policies implemented under Obama. The administration has already sought to scale back greenhouse-gas emissions standards for existing power plants and automobiles. Environmentalists blasted the plan and stressed that it would not revive the coal industry, which has declined over the past decade as utilities have shifted to cheaper natural gas and renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar power. “Coal plants will continue to close, and new ones are unlikely to be built because there are cleaner, more affordable alternatives,” said Bob Perciasepe, president of the Center for Climate Change and Energy Solutions in Arlington, Virginia, and former deputy EPA administrator under Obama. The agency will accept comments on the proposal for 60 days…