According to reports, the Biden administration is nearing the completion of a proposal that would require fossil-fuel-fired power stations to significantly reduce emissions or use costly carbon capture technology.
According to The New York Times, which cited officials briefed on a draft of the plan, which is expected to be released soon by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), will require coal and natural gas-fired power plants to cut or capture the vast majority of their carbon dioxide emissions by 2040.
If finalized, the regulation would be the first federal effort to reduce power plant emissions.
“EPA cannot comment because the proposals are currently under interagency review,” EPA spokesperson Maria Michalos said in a statement.
Yes, they can. They just don’t want to.
“But we have been clear from the start that we will use all of our legally upheld tools, grounded in decades-old bipartisan laws, to address dangerous air pollution and protect the air our children breathe today and for generations to come,” Michalos said.
You know you are being handed a load of bullschtein when they say they can’t talk about it now because it’s an ongoing thing, or when they say, “We have been from the start…”
VISIT OUR YOUTUBE CHANNELThe EPA aims to issue a rule for the action, which is described as a proposal to limit greenhouse gas emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired facilities, in spring 2023 and to promulgate a final rule by summer 2024, according to a late-year filing with the Office of Management and Budget. According to the complaint, there are no EPA regulations in place to regulate emissions from existing electric generating units.
Translation: your electric bills are going to skyrocket and get used to rolling blackouts.
According to the most recent official data, there are 3,393 fossil fuel-fired power plants in the United States, the vast majority of which are natural gas facilities. These facilities produce more than 60% of the nation’s electricity, compared to around 14% produced by wind and solar installations.
However, according to EPA figures, the electric power sector accounts for around 25% of total US emissions, trailing just the transportation sector and slightly ahead of the industrial sector. As a result, environmentalists and Democratic lawmakers have targeted fossil fuel power stations, arguing that emissions must be lowered in order to avert catastrophic climate change.
President Biden vowed shortly after taking office to enable the country to reach a total emission reduction of up to 52% by 2030 and a carbon-free power sector by 2035.
“Setting effective, affordable power plant carbon standards under the Clean Air Act now can ensure that the power industry delivers the emissions reductions needed to help meet the climate crisis,” argued a Natural Resources Defense Council issue brief released this month. “Time is of the essence.”
“The EPA needs to move expeditiously, proposing power plant carbon standards as promised and finalizing them by early next year,” according to the brief. “This will allow states and power companies to get to work on implementing them, so we can curb this dangerous pollution and safeguard the climate as soon as possible.”
However, the fossil fuel sector has resisted, claiming that the United States’ power infrastructure is still heavily reliant on coal, natural gas, and petroleum.
“The expected EPA regulation is just the latest in Biden’s anti-fossil fuels agenda, coercing the retirement of electricity sources that are needed during the grid transition,” said Michelle Bloodworth, president and CEO of America’s Power, a coal power trade association.
“EPA’s actions are contrary to the concerns of grid operators and other energy experts who have warned about possible electricity shortages,” she added.
In June 2022, the United States Supreme Court held that an Obama-era rule restricting power plant emissions under the Clean Air Act was unlawful because Congress never explicitly gave the EPA the authority to establish such limits. However, the Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed two months later, permits the EPA to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. However, again, The Inflation Reduction Act is unconstitutional because the authority for it is not listed in the 18 enumerated power of the federal government found in Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution. And there are no powers found for this in any of the amendments either.
