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The
proposal would lower the emissions limit for filterable
particulate matter, which includes mercury and other toxic
metals, by 67%. Plants that burn lower-grade lignite coal, which
had previously been subject to less stringent standards, would
need to cut mercury emissions by 70%, EPA said.
"By leveraging proven, emissions-reduction measures available at
reasonable costs and encouraging new, advanced control
technologies, we can reduce hazardous pollution from coal-fired
power plants, protecting our planet and improving public health
for all,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said.
The proposal followed a more than year-long review of the
existing standard and the latest pollution reduction
technologies, the EPA said.
Mercury can impair brain development in children and cause
cardiovascular issues for adults.
The EPA's move is the latest of a series of updates to rules on
power plant and industrial emissions.
The agency is also expected to issue carbon dioxide standards in
the coming weeks that will reflect last year's Supreme Court
decision limiting that agency's ability to issue sweeping
greenhouse gas regulations for the power sector.
The existing Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, enacted in 2012,
have reduced mercury emissions from coal plants by 90%,
according to the EPA.
The agency estimates the new proposals will cost companies up to
$330 million, but yield up to $1.9 billion in health benefits
over a decade.
An analysis by the Environmental Defense Fund showed that the
highest mercury-polluting plants that burn lignite coal were
concentrated in North Dakota and Texas, as well as Appalachia
and the Midwest.
(Reporting by Valerie Volcovici; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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