Public Response to Proposed Power Plant GHG Rules

Supporters and detractors of the recently proposed rule to limit greenhouse gas emission from existing power plants all agree that the rule will limit the construction and use of coal-burning power plants. GLLF provides a summary of the biggest stories from the Wisconsin and national media.

In Wisconsin

EPA sets carbon standard for new power plants: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, March 27, 2012: The climate change rules would effectively bar construction of new coal-fired power plants like those recently opened in Wisconsin. New coal plants would have to incorporate technology to capture the carbon dioxide from the smokestack and bury it underground.

EPA Proposes GHG Limits for Power Plants: Great Lakes Legal Foundation, March 28, 2012: Summary of the rule, its history, and potential impacts.

Nationally

Statements on EPA’s Proposed Carbon Pollution Standard for New Power Plants: EPA Press Release, March 27, 2012

Why EPA’s new carbon rules won’t have much impact — for now: Washington Post Blog, March 27, 2012: The rule is mostly symbolic as there are not any plans to build coal plants in the works.

For New Generation of Power Plants, a New Emission Rule From the E.P.A.: New York Times, March 27, 2012: The Obama administration’s proposed rule to control greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants — the first ever — could go far toward closing out the era of old-fashioned coal-burning power generation.

The EPA Triples Down On 'None of the Above' Energy Policy: Op-Ed in Forbes, March 28, 2012: The EPA is imposing further regulations on most other forms of energy generation as well.

Obama Power-Plant Rule Signals Demise of ‘Old King Coal’: BusinessWeek, March 28, 2012: President Barack Obama’s proposed carbon-dioxide rules for power plants effectively prohibit new coal power plants, buttressing a shift away from a power source that fueled the Industrial Revolution to cheap natural gas.

New Rules Limit Coal Plants: Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required), March 28, 2012: EPA Tips Scales Toward Natural Gas in Power Generation; Miners, GOP Cry Foul