FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Contact: Hannah Flath, hannahlee.flath@sierraclub.org, 860-634-0225
US EPA Finalizes Package of Standards to Slash Power Plant Pollution
Federal standards increase pressure on publicly-owned coal plants in Illinois
Illinois – In a major win for the climate and public health, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized four separate standards today that will slash air, water, and carbon pollution from power plants. These standards come on the heels of updated soot pollution standards that were released by the EPA in February.
These critically-needed safeguards will improve air and water quality for Illinois communities across the state that continue to be impacted by the Prairie State, Dallman, and Marion coal plants. These three publicly-owned coal plants account for about 50 percent of Illinois’ sulfur dioxide pollution and 30 percent of its carbon pollution in the power sector. While these three plants were granted more lenient pollution reduction timelines under Illinois’ Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA), they will likely face nearer-term costs in order to comply with the federal rules released today.
“While Illinois has made significant progress in the transition to clean energy, communities across the state continue to be significantly impacted by coal pollution. The publicly-owned Prairie State, Dallman, and Marion coal plants are disproportionately responsible for power sector pollution, and these federal rules offer critical safeguards to curb that pollution,” said Christine Nannicelli, Senior Campaign Representative with Sierra Club Illinois. “Municipal utilities and rural electric cooperatives that secured an exception to CEJA’s rules are on notice that they cannot continue to operate these plants indefinitely and have to plan for a coal-free future in the next decade.”
Under the EPA’s finalized carbon pollution standards, owners of coal-fired power plants who intend to operate them beyond 2039 will have a more stringent emissions requirement beginning in 2032 and plants that have committed to cease operations by 2039 will have a more stringent emissions limit beginning in 2030. These pollution compliance timelines for coal plants under the EPA rules are more aggressive than the timelines outlined in Illinois’ CEJA. The EPA’s newly finalized standards on coal wastewater (or “Effluent Limit Guidelines”) and soot are also expected to impact publicly-owned coal plants in Illinois. The EPA projects that the City of Springfield’s Dallman plant will require $12.5 million in upgrades to meet Effluent Limit Guidelines that curb water pollution.
Sierra Club has previously elevated the need for proactive, transparent energy planning to assess the future costs of maintaining these plants. In order to maintain a strong, resilient power grid for Illinois and our region, municipal utilities and rural electric cooperatives must consider more cost-effective clean energy alternatives.