EPA Rules Generate Electric Reliability Concerns

The EPA’s new regulations impacting power plants have many questioning the overall impact the rules will have on the nation’s electric reliability. An upcoming technical conference hosted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will provide greater insight on the potential impacts of the impending EPA regulations. A recent article in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel highlighted one possible impact in Wisconsin and Michigan.

The EPA projects the impacts of each individual rule it promulgates, but it does not consider the impact of the sum of all rules it is proposing. The total impact of all the rules is of particular concern to those in the power generation industry, which is faced with a slew of new regulations.

An upcoming technical conference hosted by the FERC will provide greater insight on the potential impacts of the impending EPA regulations. The FERC conference will include discussion of processes used by planning authorities to identify reliability risks; progress that has been made to address reliability impacts; and policy approaches that could be adopted to mitigate reliability impacts. A free live webcast of the conference will be broadcast online.

Electric reliability is of particular concern in states that, like Wisconsin, rely on coal for a significant portion of their energy production. A recent article in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel noted that “coal-fired power plants generating 12,600 megawatts of electricity - enough to power more than 10 million homes - are at risk of being shut down as utilities strive to comply with environmental rules.”

This post was authored by GLLF staff attorney Emily Kelchen.