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In April 2023, the EPA announced a proposed rule to strengthen and update the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) for coal-fired power plants, achieving important hazardous air pollutant emissions reductions and ensuring standards reflect the latest advancements in pollution control technologies. If passed, the rule represents the most significant update to date since the […]
A February 2023 Morgan Stanley report says renewable energy will replace coal-fired power plants by 2033, reports Power magazine. “The report published Feb. 1 said renewable energy such as solar and wind power will provide nearly 40% of U.S. electricity in 2030, and as much as 55% in 2035,” the Power article says. “The U.S. […]
On January 11, 2022, the EPA announced coal-fired power plants will be required to clean up their coal-ash waste ponds as the Agency begins enforcing regulations to remove decades of coal combustion residue (CCR). Facilities impacted by this announcement are located in New York, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, and Kentucky, reports CNN. CCR […]
In a final action, the Trump EPA has reversed a finding the Agency made in 2000 (and affirmed by the Obama EPA in 2012) that it is appropriate and necessary (A&N) to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) from coal- and oil-fired electric generating units (EGUs) under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act […]
It has been clear for some time that deregulatory actions at the federal level will slow but not stop the decline of coal as an energy source in the United States. Still, the EPA continues to do what it can to ensure that coal remains a key component of the nation’s energy portfolio.
The Trump administration is relying heavily on its environmental authority to try to reverse the declining role of coal in energy generation. Under both the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Agency has the power to regulate how much the coal-fired electricity sector must do and how much […]
The EPA is proposing several significant revisions to its 2015 regulations governing coal combustion residuals (CCRs) generated by electric utilities.
The Edison Electric Institute (EEI), which represents the interests of all U.S. investor-owned electric companies, does not believe the EPA should eliminate its 2012 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS).
A proposed project to construct a terminal in Longview, Washington, from which up to 44 million metric tons of Western coal would be shipped annually to Asian ports, hit another snag when a U.S. district judge dismissed a claim by the project’s sponsors (plaintiffs) that Washington State’s denial of a water quality permit for the […]
In 2018, the EPA issued the first of two sets of amendments to the Agency’s 2015 regulations (April 17, 2015, Federal Register (FR)) governing the disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR) generated by electric power plants. Among other things, the 2015 rule directed that the owners and operators (O/O) of CCR units (i.e., landfills and […]