Psychoblues
12-11-2008, 01:24 AM
Amazing!!!!!!!!!! Too little, too late!!!!!!!!!!!
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 10, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Six weeks before leaving office, the Bush administration is giving up on an effort to ease restrictions on pollution from coal-burning power plants, a key plank of its original energy agenda and one that put the president at odds with environmentalists his entire eight years in the White House.
President George W. Bush had hoped to make both changes to air pollution regulations final before leaving office on Jan. 20. In the midst of a coal-fired power plant construction boom, the rules would have made it easier for energy companies to expand existing facilities and to erect new power plants in areas of the country that meet air quality standards.
But the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday conceded that it didn't have enough time to complete the rules changes, which were undermined by a federal court decision earlier this year that scrapped a signature component of Bush's clean air policies.
The EPA, in a statement, said that it ''will continue to advocate for the important health benefits'' the initiatives would have achieved.
Environmentalists, however, said the decision would leave intact for the incoming Obama administration the strongest tools under the law for dealing with power plant pollution.
''It's stunning. This is the most high profile prize sought by the utility industry,'' said John Walke, a lawyer with the Natural Resources Defense Council. ''It would have entangled the incoming administration up in a new rulemaking process while causing harm in many parts of the country.''
The proposal, first unveiled in 2005, would have changed how existing coal-fired power plants calculate emissions increases to determine whether they need to install pollution control equipment. The Bush administration wanted to base the calculation on an hourly rate, rather than an annual average. Environmentalists and governors of Northeastern states said such a change would have resulted in more of the pollution that causes acid rain and smog problems in the region.
The second rule would have made it easier for power plants to be built in areas with some of the cleanest areas of the country, including national parks, by changing how states, the EPA and others assess how the new source of pollution would affect air quality. That proposal was opposed by the National Park Service and some of the agency's own regional air quality experts.
''The overturning of these rules is a huge victory for Tennesseans and all Americans who enjoy our great American outdoors,'' said Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Republican who led an effort with other senators opposing the changes as a threat to air quality in national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains.
Electricity producers long have argued that the standard for triggering pollution control requirements should be based on an hourly measurement rate. The issue came to a head during the Clinton administration, which went after dozens of coal-fired power plants across the country for making modifications that were increasing emissions.
Some of those enforcement cases ended up in court. In 2007, power companies lost their argument before the Supreme Court and the Bush administration then had to rewrite its regulation to comply with the court's ruling.
Industry representatives expressed disappointment with the EPA's decision.
''The rule would have brought further clarity to Clean Air Act enforcement,'' said Scott Segal, director of the Electric Reliability Coordinating Council, a coalition of power companies. ''Unfortunately, the agency missed an opportunity. ... It seems clear that EPA wants to give the Obama administration an opportunity to grapple with this important issue on their own.''
More and lot's of links: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2008/12/10/washington/AP-Bush-Power-Plants.html?_r=1
The good people of Tennessee appreciate all they can get in this consideration!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:beer::cheers2::beer:
Psychoblues
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 10, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Six weeks before leaving office, the Bush administration is giving up on an effort to ease restrictions on pollution from coal-burning power plants, a key plank of its original energy agenda and one that put the president at odds with environmentalists his entire eight years in the White House.
President George W. Bush had hoped to make both changes to air pollution regulations final before leaving office on Jan. 20. In the midst of a coal-fired power plant construction boom, the rules would have made it easier for energy companies to expand existing facilities and to erect new power plants in areas of the country that meet air quality standards.
But the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday conceded that it didn't have enough time to complete the rules changes, which were undermined by a federal court decision earlier this year that scrapped a signature component of Bush's clean air policies.
The EPA, in a statement, said that it ''will continue to advocate for the important health benefits'' the initiatives would have achieved.
Environmentalists, however, said the decision would leave intact for the incoming Obama administration the strongest tools under the law for dealing with power plant pollution.
''It's stunning. This is the most high profile prize sought by the utility industry,'' said John Walke, a lawyer with the Natural Resources Defense Council. ''It would have entangled the incoming administration up in a new rulemaking process while causing harm in many parts of the country.''
The proposal, first unveiled in 2005, would have changed how existing coal-fired power plants calculate emissions increases to determine whether they need to install pollution control equipment. The Bush administration wanted to base the calculation on an hourly rate, rather than an annual average. Environmentalists and governors of Northeastern states said such a change would have resulted in more of the pollution that causes acid rain and smog problems in the region.
The second rule would have made it easier for power plants to be built in areas with some of the cleanest areas of the country, including national parks, by changing how states, the EPA and others assess how the new source of pollution would affect air quality. That proposal was opposed by the National Park Service and some of the agency's own regional air quality experts.
''The overturning of these rules is a huge victory for Tennesseans and all Americans who enjoy our great American outdoors,'' said Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Republican who led an effort with other senators opposing the changes as a threat to air quality in national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains.
Electricity producers long have argued that the standard for triggering pollution control requirements should be based on an hourly measurement rate. The issue came to a head during the Clinton administration, which went after dozens of coal-fired power plants across the country for making modifications that were increasing emissions.
Some of those enforcement cases ended up in court. In 2007, power companies lost their argument before the Supreme Court and the Bush administration then had to rewrite its regulation to comply with the court's ruling.
Industry representatives expressed disappointment with the EPA's decision.
''The rule would have brought further clarity to Clean Air Act enforcement,'' said Scott Segal, director of the Electric Reliability Coordinating Council, a coalition of power companies. ''Unfortunately, the agency missed an opportunity. ... It seems clear that EPA wants to give the Obama administration an opportunity to grapple with this important issue on their own.''
More and lot's of links: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2008/12/10/washington/AP-Bush-Power-Plants.html?_r=1
The good people of Tennessee appreciate all they can get in this consideration!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:beer::cheers2::beer:
Psychoblues