THE US ENVIRONMENTAL Protection Agency (EPA) issued new regulations on 9 November 2001 which will help protect fish and shellfish from the cooling water intakes of power plants.

EPA administrator Christie Whitman signed the first of three final rules the agency plans to issues over the next three years on the design, capacity and construction of new structures at approximately 121 new manufacturing and electric generating plants over the next 20 years The rule, which is required by the Clean Water Act, will cost less that US$47M annually and allow facility operators to use adaptive technology based on local technology, claimed the EPA.