EPA moves to repeal greenhouse gas limits on power plants

The Environmental Protection Agency is moving to repeal federal greenhouse gas emissions standards for coal- and natural gas-fired power plants, a decision environmental groups say could affect air quality and climate impacts in Houston and across the country.

The EPA says the rollback could save billions of dollars in regulatory costs and help support affordable and reliable electricity.

The announcement came as several high-ranking EPA officials met in Houston Monday to discuss regulatory hurdles facing the energy industry.

Jennifer Hadayia with Air Alliance Houston said the changes could have immediate and long-term consequences.

“This particular rollback affects the health of our air in the short and long term, and it affects the impact of extreme weather.”

One Houston-area facility that could be affected is the W.A. Parish Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant in Fort Bend County about 30 miles from Houston.

The Trump administration is also moving to eliminate the federal greenhouse gas “endangerment finding,” which dates to 2009 and established that greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health and welfare. The EPA finalized its repeal of that finding earlier this year.

Hadayia said eliminating the finding could remove an incentive for power plants to reduce emissions.

Rice University environmental engineering professor Daniel Cohan said power plants contribute to pollutants that affect Houston’s air quality, including ozone-forming nitrogen pollution and sulfate particles.

Cohan said Houston has struggled with ozone pollution for decades and has more recently violated federal standards for particulate matter.

“The number two ingredient in the particle pollution, where Houston is far above the standard, is sulfate. And power plants are the biggest source of that sulfur pollution.”

Cohan said the changes don’t necessarily mean Houston’s air quality will immediately deteriorate, but he said they could delay improvements.

“It doesn’t mean that our area is going to get worse. It means that we’re missing an opportunity to make our air cleaner.”

He also said Texas has added wind, solar and battery storage quickly enough to meet growing electricity demand without significant new coal or natural gas generation.

The EPA’s proposed repeal of the power-plant greenhouse gas standards is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to roll back environmental regulations.

The agency’s proposal is subject to public comment before the changes can take effect.

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