A federal court ruled last week that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must change its rules regarding mercury emissions from coal-burning utility companies.
The ruling is another significant setback for utility companies that rely heavily on coal-fired power plants that will now have to install expensive mercury-reduction equipment to begin cleaning up the 48 tons of mercury they release into the air each year.
In recent months numerous plans for new coal-fired plants have been scuttled nationwide as public awareness has grown concerning coal’s role in global warming.
Now the spotlight is being turned on toxic effects of mercury released from coal, which contaminates water and fish and has been linked to neurological disorders in young children.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the EPA violated the Clean Air Act in 2005 when it exempted coal plants from the strictest emission controls for mercury, as well as other toxic substances like nickel, lead and arsenic.
The mercury cap-and-trade program the EPA created for utilities, called the "Clean Air Mercury Rule," was deemed illegal by the court, even thought its aim was to reduce nationwide mercury emissions 70% by 2018.
New York and California were two of the 14 states that joined public health and environmental groups in suing the EPA over creating the separate system, which exempted utilities from more strict rules in the Clean Air Act.
Environmentalists praised the ruling. "The EPA recklessly ignored the law and the science," said Vickie Patton, an attorney for Environmental Defense. "Now, each coal plant in America must clean up its own toxic mercury pollution."
Utilities say the cap-and-trade system allowed them the flexibility they need to gradually reduce emissions, without making a full switch to producing electricity from natural gas, which is cleaner than coal, but more expensive.
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