ACSF releases report on EPA's new pollution controls for electric power plants

The American Clean Skies Foundation (ACSF) released a new report today on the plans of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to adopt stricter pollution controls for electric power plants. The report concludes that the EPA's proposed actions are likely to spur major changes in the fuels used by the utility sector -- with greater reliance on cleaner sources such as natural gas and renewable energy -- and should not present reliability concerns.

“Growing the Market for Clean Power: the EPA's New Power Plant Regulations and What they Mean for Utilities and Public Health”

ACSF's report also details the large public health benefits likely to flow from the new rules, fulfilling Congressional mandates that reach back 20 years or more.

Gregory C. Staple, the CEO of ACSF and a co-author of the report, said: "While some utility interests suggest that the next wave of EPA regulations will place an unmanageable burden on the power sector, our review found otherwise. In addition to installing new pollution controls, there are abundant sources of cleaner power available to meet the EPA's proposed actions, especially given that a very large number of gas-fired power plants now lie idle much of the time. So we see the EPA's actions as providing an important new driver for cleaner energy."

ACSF's full report, "Growing the Market for Clean Power: the EPA's New Power Plant Regulations and What they Mean for Utilities and Public Health," is available at www.cleanskies.org.