WildEarth Guardians Applauds EPA Move to Control Global Warming Pollution from Power Plants, Other Large Sources of Air Pollutio

Groundbreaking Proposal Would Require the Use of Best Pollution Controls to Safeguard the Climate

DENVER-WildEarth Guardians is hailing an EPA proposal to require large sources of air pollution to control greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act as a monumental step forward in protecting the American West from global warming.

“With global warming threatening the American West’s clean water, clear air, and healthy, prosperous communities, this proposal is a breath of fresh air,” said Jeremy Nichols, Climate and Energy Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. “It’s high time we started reining in unchecked greenhouse gases using common sense and cost-effective controls.”

Announced late yesterday by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the proposal would require new and modified sources of air pollution that emit 25,000 tons of greenhouse gases per year to use the best available pollution controls to keep emissions in check. To do so, the proposal would require sources to meet air pollution permitting requirements that are already established under the federal Clean Air Act. A fact sheet of the EPA’s proposed rule is available here, while the proposed rule can be downloaded here.

The proposal bolsters WildEarth Guardians’ efforts to secure limits on greenhouse gases from coal-fired power plants in the American West. Coal-fired power plants are the largest sources of greenhouse gases in the West, due to their massive release of carbon dioxide.

WildEarth Guardians is currently in court challenging the failure of the EPA to respond to a petition challenging the failure of the State of Colorado to address carbon dioxide emissions from Xcel Energy’s Hayden coal-fired power plant, located in northwestern Colorado. While Colorado has argued it has no legal authority to address carbon dioxide emissions under the Clean Air Act, the EPA’s proposal refutes this assertion. WildEarth Guardians has launched similar challenges over the failure of the State of Colorado to limit carbon dioxide from other Xcel Energy coal-fired power plants in Colorado, including the Valmont plant in Boulder, the Cherokee plant in north Denver, and the Pawnee plant in Brush, 80 miles northeast of Denver.

Collectively, Xcel Energy’s coal-fired power plants in Colorado release more than 22 million tons of greenhouse gases, accounting for more than 17% of the state’s global warming pollution, more than any other source.

“Simple solutions are at hand: greater efficiency, cleaner fuels, and renewable energy are all key ways to control greenhouse gases from coal-fired power plants and safeguard the climate,” said Nichols. “Thankfully, instead of turning its back on global warming, EPA is laying the groundwork to launch these solutions.”

The EPA will be accepting comment on the proposed rule for 60 days and has announced it intends to finalize the rule in 2010.


 

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