March 15, 2005
Adirondack Mountain Club
Citizen's Campaign for the Environment
Environmental Advocates of New York
New York Public Interest Research Group
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks

EPA Finalizes Weaker Mercury Rule Than Proposed
Groups Call on Governor to Protect New Yorkers

New York - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as expected, issued a cap-and-trade rule for mercury emissions from power plants, which in its details essentially mirrors the Bush Administration’s Clear Skies legislation that was defeated in the Senate last week. The mercury rule, which is weaker than what was originally proposed, places a 38 ton cap in 2010 and a 15 ton cap in 2018, using a trading program that allows power plants to not reduce pollution by buying emissions allowances. The original proposal placed the cap for the first phase at 34 tons.

"Big energy once again was able to get preferential treatment from the Bush administration," said Angela Ledford, Director for Clear the Air. "In the fine print, EPA is illegally revoking its earlier finding that it is appropriate and necessary to regulate all toxic emissions from power plants, just like all other industrial sources. Our children will be the ones who pay for this give-away to energy companies."

Under a "maximum achievable control technology" (MACT) approach, which the Clean Air Act requires for mercury pollution, power plants would have to reduce their emissions of mercury by about 90% in 2008 without pollution trading.

Even the proposed rule came under harsh criticism. A record number of Americans, more than 600,000, wrote the EPA last summer urging stronger action. Thousands of environmental and public health groups and politicians from both sides of the isle, including the Pataki administration criticized the proposal in favor of stronger action. At issue was the cap-and-trade program and the cap levels and timeframe. Trading mercury will likely exacerbate hotspots in New York and will delay full implementation. EPA’s own modeling shows that mercury emissions in 2025 are still nearly 25 tons.

"This rule means New York's waters will remain contaminated with mercury pollution, adversely effecting ecosystems, public health and local economies," said Peter Bauer, Executive Director of the Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks. "A separate New York standard would go a long way to relieving the agency's bad decision."

In addition to expressing great dissatisfaction with the EPA mercury rule, groups called on Governor Pataki to set an in-state standard for mercury pollution from power plants.

"The EPA's mercury rule is illegal and irresponsible. It lets big energy companies continue polluting, leaving families at risk of ongoing mercury poisoning," said Christine Vanderlan, Program Director with Environmental Advocates of New York. "Governor Pataki must act to protect New Yorkers by setting a state mercury standard."

In a February 2002 press release announcing the state's draft acid rain regulations, Governor Pataki committed to setting in-state standards for mercury and global warming pollution from power plants if the federal government failed (www.state.ny.us./governor/press/year02/feb14_1_02.htm (seventh paragraph)). In June 2004, the Pataki administration, through comments filed by Commissioner Crotty, called the EPA's mercury proposal illegal and harmful to public health and the environment.

"It is clear that the EPA has sided with polluters instead of the public," said Jason K. Babbie, Environmental Policy Analyst for the New York Public Interest Research Group. "We need Governor Pataki to make good on his previous promise and set an in-state mercury standard for power pants. The Clean Air Act calls for a 90% plant-by-plant reduction, which is the standard the Governor should immediately commit to."

A growing number of New York water bodies are contaminated with mercury. Fifty-one water bodies have fish populations the state Department of Health found were unsafe to eat due to mercury. Research released last week by area scientist show that New York has some of the hardest hit areas in the nation.

"The health of Adirondack ecosystems and future generations depends on getting the power plant mercury standard right," said Neil F. Woodworth, Executive Director of the Adirondack Mountain Club. "We hope the Governor will set the standard that the EPA should have adopted."

"Despite the growing evidence of the irreversible dangers of mercury, particularly to the central nervous system of children, EPA is adopting rules favored by polluters, at the expense of expectant mothers and children, said Dr. Cathey Falvo, a pediatrician and President of Physician for Social Responsibility in New York. "More must be done than what the EPA is offering."

The agency did not address suggestions from independent government analyses. The EPA’s Inspector General recommended the agency conduct a valid analysis of emissions limits after finding the emission limits in the proposed rule were pre-selected by management to conform to Clear Skies. The Government Accountability Office identified major shortcomings in the way EPA analyzed the economic benefits of the rule. Also EPA never provided meaningful analyses to validate their use of the cap and trade approach over a MACT approach.

"The Bush administrations forced EPA to ignore basic rules and science, which is all the more reason for New York to set its own standard," said William Cooke, Legislative Director for Citizen's Campaign for the Environment. "Governor Pataki must fill the void the EPA left by setting a protective power plant mercury standard."