Controlling Power Plant Emissions: Decision Process and Chronology

Decision Process
Chronology of Actions to Date

Decision Process

In remarks at the Adirondack Water Quality Conference, August 10, 2004, Administrator Mike Leavitt expressed his commitment to an open, inclusive and rigorous decision process for finalizing a rule to regulate mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants for the first time in our nation’s history. After more than a decade of discussion, the Agency has entered the decision phase and is on track to promulgate a final rule by March 15, 2005. This new, comprehensive mercury web site was launched to provide the public with a broad range of information on mercury and to present information on the Agency’s deliberations during the decision phase.

Administrator Leavitt identified five Guiding Principles that provide a context for additional inquiry and narrow the focus of Agency deliberations. During the next several months, the Agency will continue to study the mercury health impacts, control technologies, economic consequences of regulation and domestic and international emission sources. We will continue to meet with a wide range of experts and stakeholders to understand the many complex perspectives on these issues.

The Agency will separately seek additional public comment through a Notice of Data Availability (NODA) later this year (2004). The deadline for promulgating a final rule is March 15, 2005.

Chronology of Actions to Date

Note: Many of the documents on this page are provided in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format. For information about PDF and the free reader required to view the documents, see EPA's PDF page.

Early 1990s

The Clean Air Act provides that EPA must take several steps before regulating air toxics emissions (such as mercury) from power plants. Deadlines for these steps were specified in a legal settlement of related litigation filed in the early 1990s.

October 1994

EPA enters settlement agreement providing that by November 15, 1995, it would complete its "Utility Air Toxics Study" to Congress; determine whether its is "appropriate and necessary" to regulate power plants under Clean Air Act section 112; and, if so, to issue such regulations by November 15, 2000. The parties subsequently agreed to extend the deadline for completing the Utility Air Toxics study until February 1998. EPA also agreed to solicit additional information from power plants and to use such information for making its ppropriate and necessary determination.

December 1997

EPA analyzed mercury emissions from power plants and other industrial sources, the health and environmental impacts of those emissions and available control technologies. These findings were issued as a "Mercury Study Report to Congress" in December 1997
URL: http://www.epa.gov/airprogm/oar/mercury.html

February 1998

In the "Utility Air Toxics Study" report to Congress, issued in February 1998, EPA focused on power plants, analyzing emissions of toxic air pollutants, including mercury.
Executive Summary (PDF, 109K)
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/combust/utiltox/utilexec.pdf

Volume 1 (PDF, 502 pp, 5 MB)
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/combust/utiltox/eurtc1.pdf

Volume 2 (PDF, 295 pp, 796 K)
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/combust/utiltox/eurtc2.pdf

Errata (PDF, 2 pp, 17K)
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/combust/utiltox/addendum.pdf

Fact sheet (PDF, 5 pp, 30K)
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/combust/utiltox/utilfs.pdf

November 1998

Deadline for EPA to determine whether it is "appropriate and necessary" to regulate power plant emissions under CAA section 112 is extended until December 15, 2000. EPA further agrees to issue proposed and final power plant mercury emission standards by December 15, 2003 and December 15, 2004, respectively.

December 2000

EPA announced its finding that it was "appropriate and necessary" to regulate coal- and oil-fired electric utilities under section 112 of the Clean Air Act. This finding, known as the Utility Air Toxics Determination (PDF, 160K), triggered a requirement for EPA to propose regulations to control air toxics emissions, including mercury, from these facilities by December 15, 2003.
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg/t3/fr_notices/utilfind.pdf

January 2004

On January 30, 2004, EPA proposed three alternatives for controlling emissions of mercury from power plants. The first alternative is to require power plants to install controls known as “maximum achievable control technologies” (MACT) under section 112 of the Clean Air Act. The second alternative would establish “standards of performance” limiting mercury emissions from new and existing utilities. This proposal, under section 111 of the Clean Air Act, would create a market-based cap-and-trade program. The third alternative is also a cap-and-trade program but would be federally run under the Clean Air Act section 112(n).

EPA also proposed to revise its December 2000 finding that it is "appropriate and necessary" to regulate utility hazardous air emissions using the MACT standards provisions (section 112) of the Clean Air Act. This action would give EPA the flexibility to consider a more cost effective way to control mercury emissions.
URL: http://www.epa.gov/air/mercuryrule/rule.htm

March 2004

On March 16, 2004, EPA proposed a supplement to its January 2004 proposal. This action provided details on the proposed mercury trading program and methodologies for measuring mercury emissions.
URL: http://www.epa.gov/air/mercuryrule/rule.htm

April 2004

To afford the public with an additional opportunity to comment on EPA's proposal, EPA agreed to extend the deadline for issuance of the final power plant mercury rule from December 15, 2004 to March 15, 2005.