EPA and DOT announce new truck standards

EPA and DOT Finalize Greenhouse Gas and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Heavy-Duty Trucks

The final standards are cost effective for consumers and businesses.

EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) jointly finalized standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles that will improve fuel efficiency and cut carbon pollution, while bolstering energy security and spurring manufacturing innovation. The final phase two standards were called for by President Obama’s Climate Action Plan, and respond to the President’s directive in early 2014 to develop new standards that run into the next decade.

The final standards are expected to lower CO2 emissions by approximately 1.1 billion metric tons, save vehicle owners fuel costs of about $170 billion, and reduce oil consumption by up to two billion barrels over the lifetime of the vehicles sold under the program. Read more about the new standards.

Read a joint blog post by EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy and Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx on how these standards are helping to address climate change.

Volkswagen’s “Clean Diesel” Emissions – What Went Wrong?

Recently, Volkswagen admitted that it had programmed its clean diesel engines to turn on full emissions controls only when the car was in test mode. This enabled VW diesel cars to pass emissions testing, but did not reflect real emissions during on-the-road driving conditions.  High nitrogen oxide emissions resulted, which was discovered by a West Virginia University researcher.

Kevin Stewart, American Lung Association’s Director of Environmental Health in the Mid-Atlantic Region, will explain how Volkswagen illegally bypassed emission controls and increased air pollution from these diesel vehicles.  Join us at our community meeting at Second Presbyterian Church, October 1, 7 pm.

For additional information, go to:  NYTimes – Volkswagen Recall

Pennsylvania’s Clean Power Plan – What Would You Tell the Governor?

Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection is holding listening sessions around the state to solicit comments about the EPA’s Clean Power rules, which were finalized this summer.  DEP would like to hear from you about your concerns and the means to achieve Pennsylvania’s targets for carbon reductions.  There is an upcoming listening session in York on Oct. 5, 2015,(2-5 pm) at  the Wyndham Garden, 2000 Loucks Road, York, PA  17408

Learn about the Clean Power Plan at our community meeting and tell us the points you want the Governor to hear if you cannot attend the DEP listening session.

DEP to hold listening session on EPA Clean Power rule

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will hold a listening session Thursday, September 25 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to hear what you think of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Rule. This rule will limit carbon pollution from the nation’s power plants by 30% by 2030. The rule will require states to develop plans to reduce carbon intensity from electric generation plants. In July, EPA held public hearings in Pittsburgh on how to implement the rule.

The Clean Air Board recently sponsored a forum at Dickinson College to discuss the issues raised the EPA proposed rule. At that forum, DEP Deputy Secretary Vince Brisini presented his views on the proposed rule.

Now you have the opportunity to inform DEP of your views on reducing carbon emissions. Please sign up to speak at the DEP listening session.
You can register for the listening session by contacting DEP’s Tammey Adams at 717-772-2725 or taadams@pa.gov.

Getting Pennsylvania on board EPA’s plan to reduce Power Plant Carbon Emissions

EPA recently held public hearings on reducing the nation’s carbon emission from power plants by 30% by 2030. The Clean Air Board is sponsoring a forum to discuss the issues raised the EPA plan. Professor Michael Heiman (Dickinson College) will discuss the merits of the plan, followed by a panel discussion and questions and answers.

The talk will cover: How to Balance Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Equity. Why the Obama Administration Choose Direct Regulation to Address Carbon Emissions. What are Pennsylvania’s Options for Meeting the EPA’s Mandate? Professor Heiman will address the historic and current challenge in reducing carbon emissions to combat climate change. A panel of local experts will address the options Pennsylvania has to meet EPA’s targets.

Sept. 4, 7 pm. Dickinson College – Stafford Auditorium (Rector Science Complex), 301 W. Louther Street, Carlisle, PA
The community is invited. Parking is available across Louther Street by the Library.

To comment on the EPA rule, please follow this link: http://www2.epa.gov/carbon-pollution-standards/clean-power-plan-proposed-rule-comment-guide

CAB Comment on DEP’s smog plan

Comments on DEP smog plan to the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board by Thomas Y. Au, President of the Clean Air Board, May 29, 2014

Summer will soon be here and that can mean high levels of pollutants in our air, specifically ozone and small particles, commonly known as smog. Meteorologists declare “Air Quality Action” days when they project that weather conditions are conducive for unhealthy air pollution. In 2012, an extremely hot year, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) called eleven “action days” for the Susquehanna Valley due to high concentrations of ozone. In 2013, DEP called four action days in the Susquehanna Valley due to ozone.

We should heed those warnings. Recent scientific studies conclude that short-term exposure to unhealthy air pollution can have significant adverse effects on pregnant women, children, the elderly, and even the general population–especially those with pre-existing conditions such as asthma. There is increasing scientific evidence that exposure to ozone can lead to neurological disorders. Short term symptoms resulting from breathing high levels of ozone and fine particulate include chest pain, coughing, nausea, throat irritation, and congestion. These pollutants also aggravate 
bronchitis, heart disease, emphysema, and asthma—and can increase risks of stroke. Children, senior citizens, and those with asthma or other respiratory problems are urged to limit outdoor activities during action days.

Air Quality Action days are often declared when there is little wind and when the amount of ozone or particles in stagnant air are projected to exceed federal health standards. Smog is caused when chemicals including nitrogen oxides react in sunlight, forming ground-level ozone. Coal fired power plants are the single largest source of smog-causing pollutants in Pennsylvania. While nearly all of the state’s largest coal plants have the technology to reduce nitrogen oxides, many do not use the available technology. The Clean Air Act requires that existing sources of emissions which contribute to the ozone problem install reasonably available control technology. Reasonably available control technology (RACT) is defined as the lowest emission limitation that a particular source is capable of meeting by the application of control technology that is reasonably available considering technological and economic feasibility. Accordingly, RACT determinations must set limits as rigorous as could be met through use of feasible control technology.

The proposed regulation does not set reasonably available control technology for Pennsylvania coal plants anywhere close to the what can be achieved through control technology. Most of Pennsylvania coal plants have highly effective NOx emission controls installed, such as Selective Catalytic Reduction (“SCR”) and low NOx burners. However, in the emission limits proposed, the RACT NOx emission limit for a coal-fired boiler would be an extremely permissive range of between 0.45 lbs/MMBtu and 0.20 lbs/MMBtu. See Proposed 25 Pa. Code § 121.97(g)(1)(v)-(vi). These limits are far higher than recent emissions history and higher than RACT limits set in nearby states. The Sierra Club has submitted detailed information to the Department to document this point. (Sierra Club letter, Jan. 17, 2014)

This proposed limit is not only based on technology inferior to that already in place at nearly all coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania, but is also significantly more permissive than what those facilities are capable of achieving. In fact, under the averaging rule proposed the coal plants would not need to achieve these limits during ozone action days. See Proposed 25 Pa. Code § 129.98(a). This is like bypassing your catalytic converter in your car to save a few pennies.

The most serious health risks from ozone are associated with high energy demand days when the non-SCR units are almost certain to be operating. Therefore it is imperative that these units be capable of curtailing their NOx emissions on these days so that they comply with emission limits consistent with the installation and operation of reasonably available emission technology found elsewhere in this region.

We continue to suffer from high ozone days during the summer. Air quality in Pennsylvania continues to violate national ambient air quality standards. To achieve compliance with the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS, reductions from all major sectors — in-state stationary sources, in-state mobile sources, and out-of-state stationary sources — are essential. This proposed regulation needs to be revised to achieve real reductions in smog causing pollutants.

Your comments on this proposal can be submitted directly to the Environmental Quality Board by June 30, 2014.

Online Comments

Comments, including the one page summary, may be submitted to the EQB by accessing the EQB’s Online Public Comment System at:

http://www.ahs.dep.pa.gov/RegComments

Note regarding the online system: If an acknowledgement of comments submitted online is not received by the sender within two business days, the comments should be re-sent to the EQB to ensure receipt.

Written Comments

Written comments and summaries can also be mailed to Environmental Quality Board, P.O. Box 8477, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8477.

All comments must be received by the EQB on or before the close of the public comment period.

Support clean burning wood-heaters

Less wood smoke means healthier air

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed new limits on harmful air pollution from new wood-burning devices. These devices, such as boilers, furnaces, and stoves, can subject a neighborhood to dangerous air pollution. Wood smoke, which contains soot, carbon monoxide, and other toxic air pollutants, can trigger asthma attacks, cause cancer, and even cut short lives.

Wood smoke can pollute a neighborhood and can travel miles away. That means people who live nearby and far away can suffer from inhaling wood smoke. Strong standards will help ensure that new wood burning devices are much cleaner and do not further pollute our air. EPA needs to adopt these long-overdue standards to protect our health and our neighborhoods from harmful wood smoke-related air pollutants.

To send a comment to EPA, click on the American Lung Association link: http://bit.ly/Rowbtg