EPA tightens emission standards for coal

Coal companies reacted angrily to new carbon emission limits unveiled last week by the Environmental Protection Agency, saying the tougher standards could bankrupt the industry. Under the regulations, new coal-burning power plants must limit their emissions to 1,100 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt hour, a standard that companies say can be met only by using costly technology to capture carbon dioxide before it is released into the atmosphere. EPA chief Gina McCarthy said such “carbon capture” is already in use at some power plants and that the new limits are needed to tackle climate change, which she called “one of the most significant public health threats of our time.”

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