Grid operators and coal interests are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to rethink a series of proposed rules to crack down harder on pollutants from coal-fired power plants, a signature environmental move by President Joe Biden's administration that starkly contrasts the industry-friendly approach of former President Donald Trump.
The Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, expected to be finalized next year, would, among other things, impose aggressive ozone and nitrogen oxide controls on coal-powered generators. Additionally, these generators would be required to install and operate selective catalytic reduction technologies by 2026, which could prove costly for the long-declining industry.
Residents of areas served by PJM are"not immune from the trends occurring elsewhere in the country that have driven premature retirement of fossil resources at the very time when such resources will be needed as a backup given the intermittent nature of renewable resource output," PJM said. PJM, MISO, and a pair of other energy companies, the Southwest Power Pool and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, drafted a letter urging the EPA to include in any final rule something called a"reliability safety valve," which would allow coal-powered generators not to comply if it put at risk reliable sources of energy in the areas the companies serve.
The “Good Neighbor” plan would prevent about 1,000 premature deaths, 1.3 million cases of asthma, 2,400 visits to hospitals and emergency rooms, and 470,000 missed days of school, according to an EPA fact sheet.