WildEarth Guardians

Monday, December 20, 2010
Environmental Protection Agency Poised to Release Clean Air Plan for Coal-fired San Juan Generating Station

Pollution Reductions Promise to Open the Door for Cleaner Energy in New Mexico
Contact: Jeremy Nichols (303) 573-4898 x 1303

Read our San Juan Generating Station Fact Sheet

San Juan County, NM—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today is poised to release a clean air plan that will reduce haze and smog forming pollution by more than 90% from the San Juan Generating Station, the second largest coal-fired power plant in New Mexico.

“The EPA’s clean air plan promises enormous benefits, but at the same time it exposes the true cost of burning coal at the San Juan Generating Station,” said Jeremy Nichols, Climate and Energy Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. “We hope the EPA’s plan, in forcing air pollution reductions, helps to spur a move away from coal and instead toward developing New Mexico’s abundant wind and solar.” 

The EPA’s plan was spurred by provisions under the Clean Air Act that require the oldest and dirtiest sources of air pollution to curb their emissions to reduce haze in National Parks and wilderness areas. Modeling prepared by PNM shows the San Juan Generating Station contributes to 80% of all visibility degradation in Mesa Verde National Park, 70% in the San Pedro Parks Wilderness, and 45% in Bandelier National Monument. Called “Best Available Retrofit Technology,” the EPA’s plan would reduce visibility impairment by more than 40%.

In doing so, the EPA’s plan would significantly improve public health in the Four Corners region because the same pollutants that form haze are the same that form smog and particulates. It is estimated that every year the plant causes 33 premature deaths, 50 heart attacks, 600 asthma attacks, 21 cases of chronic bronchitis, and 31 asthma-related emergency room visits every year at a cost of more than $250 million (see Clean Air Task Force).

All told, data from the EPA suggests that for every dollar invested in cleaning up the San Juan Generating Station, the region could reap $5 in benefits due to the health and environmental benefits (see Report from Colorado).

Operated and primarily owned by Public Service Company of New Mexico, or PNM, the San Juan Generation Station is an 1,800 megawatt power plant that every year releases thousands of tons of toxic air pollution from its smokestacks. Located 15 miles west of Farmington, the plant consists of four boilers and releases more than 18,000 tons of smog forming nitrogen oxide gases, 51 pounds of mercury, and more than 13,000,000 tons of carbon dioxide—as much as is released by more than 2.3 million passenger vehicles.

While the EPA’s plan is a milestone, groups are calling on PNM to instead look to fully retiring the San Juan Generating Station and offset the electricity it generates with renewable energy. New Mexico already has a 20% renewable energy standard and reports show that a combination of rooftop solar and wind energy could meet New Mexico’s power needs by more than seventy-fold (see Energy Self-Reliant States). Already, utilities in Colorado and other states are beginning to retire coal-fired power plants, opting against investing millions in the face of mounting environmental liability. 

“There’s no such thing as clean coal,” said Nichols. “Instead of investing ratepayer dollars into upgrading the San Juan Generating Station, PNM would better serve New Mexico and the health and welfare of the Four Corners region by investing in clean, renewable energy.”