Air pollution

According to EPA, air toxics are the most hazardous air pollutants. In addition to mercury and arsenic, power plants emit lead, dioxin, and acid gases that are known threats to public health. Even in small amounts these extremely harmful air pollutants are linked cancer, mutations, neurological damage and other serious health problems. Millions of tons of air toxics are released into the air annually from manmade sources such as coal-fired In March 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to propose an updated air quality standard for life-threatening hazardous air pollution from power plants, such as mercury and arsenic. This Air Toxics safeguard is also called the “Power Plant MACT (Maximum Available Control Technology).”

This move by EPA to protect public health will save lives, prevent disease and avoid hospitalizations, while creating new jobs installing air pollution control equipment.

What Are Air Toxics?

power plants, cement and brick manufacturing facilities, and other industrial processes.

The Health Effects of Air Toxics

Air toxics can cause both minor and serious health problems, including:

-pre-mature death

-asthma and other respiratory diseases

-cancer

-birth defects

-reproductive problems such as reduced fertility

-damage to the immune system

-eye irritation

Mercury is one example of a particularly harmful air toxic because it builds up in the environment. A potent neurotoxin especially dangerous to small children and pregnant women, mercury exposure affects a child’s ability to walk, talk, read, write and learn. The mercury problem in the U.S. is so widespread that one in six women has mercury levels in her blood high enough to put her baby at risk, according to the EPA. Less than one teaspoon of mercury is sufficient to contaminate a 20-acre lake, yet 48 tons are being pumped into our air each year from coal fired power plants alone, which comprise largest domestic source of unregulated mercury emissions in the United States.

The Cost of the Status Quo

Our communities are paying for the costs of toxic air pollution with these sometimes deadly health problems, as well as unfishable rivers, lakes and streams. Study after study shows that to protect public health, polluters must significantly reduce the amount of toxic air pollution coming out of their smokestacks, and that means cleaning up pollution from dirty coal plants.  

Fortunately, the Environmental Protection Agency exists to develop and enforce much needed safeguards to keep polluters from making us sick.

The forthcoming Air Toxics Rule for power plants will not only save thousands of lives per year, it will help prevent disease, avoid hospitalizations, and create high-paying new jobs installing and operating the much-needed pollution control equipment.

The Need for a Strong Air Toxics Standard for Power Plants

For Decades, the power sector has successfully fought Clean Air Act implementation requirements to reduce the toxic air emissions from their facilities, even though coal plants are among the largest sources of toxic air pollution. It’s past time to stand up to polluters, and defend public health.

As required by the Clean Air Act, EPA will set new air toxics emissions limits based on the pollution reductions already achieved by the cleanest and best-performing power plants and facilities, making the standards achievable and realistic.

This straightforward approach produces standards that are both reasonable and effective in reducing air pollution and protecting public health. It also provides a level economic playing field, ensuring that power plants with good pollution controls are not at a disadvantage to competitors with no controls.