EPA ‘s new proposal would replace and improve upon the 2005 Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), which the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ordered EPA to revise in 2008.
The transport rule is designed to make use of the pollution control technologies already in place at many power plants across the country, to reduce power plant emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). By 2014, EPA expects this new rule along with its other actions and state regulations to reduce SO2 emissions by 71% and NOx emissions by 52% over 2005 levels.
SO2 and NOx, which react in the atmosphere to form fine particle pollution and ground-level ozone (smog) and create health hazards, are carried on the wind to other states and interfere with states’ ability to meet air quality standards.
The new rule address this issue by including the ‘good neighbor’ provision of the Clean Air Act to reduce interstate transport, which is the upwind state emissions that create air quality problems in downwind states.
The annual cost of compliance with the proposed rule is estimated at $2.8bn in 2014. However, EPA expects the new regulation to yield more than $120bn in annual health benefits in 2014.
