{"id":7793,"date":"2012-03-27T11:53:03","date_gmt":"2012-03-27T16:53:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/?p=7793"},"modified":"2012-03-28T10:11:18","modified_gmt":"2012-03-28T15:11:18","slug":"its-the-end-of-coal-as-we-know-it-and-the-epa-feels-fine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/2012\/03\/27\/its-the-end-of-coal-as-we-know-it-and-the-epa-feels-fine\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s the End of Coal As We Know It, and the EPA Feels Fine"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo by Andy Uhler\/KUT News<\/p>

A new EPA rule puts future coal power plants at a crossroads.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Environmental Protection Agency<\/a> issued the first standard on greenhouse gas emissions <\/a>under the Clean Air Act today for future power plants. The agency also says the rule “does not\u00a0apply to plants currently operating or new permitted plants that begin construction over the\u00a0next 12 months.” The bottom line: building a coal power plant is going to be a very unattractive option.<\/p>\n

Under the new rule<\/a>, which you can read in the embedded EPA fact sheet below, new fossil-fuel based power plants generating 25 megawatts or more of energy would be limited to emissions of 1,000 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour. Essentially, the rule favors natural gas power plants over coal. The EPA estimates that “95 percent of natural gas plants built since 2005 would meet the requirement.”<\/p>\n

But for coal plants it’s another story. Drawing the line at 1,000 pounds of carbon emissions per megawatt-hour would eliminate most new coal power plants. According to the Washington Post<\/a>, “coal plants emit an average of 1,768 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt.” Natural gas, on the other hand, “emits between 800 to 850 pounds.” <\/p>\n

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