EPA to ease power plant air pollution rule

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to ease a new air pollution rule that would require power plants in 27 states to slash emissions, reported The Wall Street Journal.

The agency’s Cross-State Air Pollution final rule issued in July calls, partly for much stricter limits on NOx and SO2 emissions from coal- and gas-fired power plants, starting in January.

The changes are expected to allow for emissions increases ranging from 1% to 4% above the July requirement, depending on the pollutant, the Journal reported, citing the sources. EPA spokesman Brendan Gilfillan was quoted by the newspaper as saying, “While we don’t have anything to announce at this time, EPA often makes technical adjustments … because data, including data in some cases provided by industry, turns out to be incorrect, outdated or incomplete.”