EPA Power Plant Rule Hinges on Unproven Technology

In order for new coal power plants to meet the EPA's new rules for reduced emissions, they will have to rely on unproven carbon capture and storage (or sequester) technologies, putting the legality of the rule in doubt.

2 minute read

September 24, 2013, 6:00 AM PDT

By Irvin Dawid


Matthew L. Wald and Michael D. Shear delve into the largely untested technology that plays a pivotal role in President Obama's plan to transform the number one source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and the crucial role it plays in reducing carbon emissions from new coal power plants.

As noted here last Friday when EPA Administrator, Gina McCarthy, released the long-awaited, 2013 Carbon Pollution Standard for New Power Plants that "would limit new gas-fired power plants to 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions per megawatt-hour and new coal plants to 1,100 pounds of carbon dioxide. Industry officials say the average advanced coal plant currently emits about 1,800 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt-hour", Wald and Shear write.

Once the rule is in place, new plants would be required to capture carbon dioxide from the smokestacks and “sequester” it underground. Officials said the regulation could be completed by the fall of 2014.

In order to reduce emissions by almost 40%, coal power plants must use carbon capture & storage technologies. Is "CCS" technology readily adoptable by the coal power plant industry? Wald and Shear write that "to protect industries from pie-in-the-sky requirements, current law limits what rules the agency can make."

E.P.A. rules sometimes demand technological advancements, but the goals that the agency establishes have to be met by techniques that existing law describes as “adequately demonstrated.”

According to the writers, "(t)hree systems of carbon capture are in various stages of development. The most common is to convert coal into a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide — which in this context is a fuel, not a pollutant — and carbon dioxide, and to recover the carbon dioxide at two different stages."

Are existing power plants using this technology? Wald and Shear write that "Ms. McCarthy cited four such projects. She told reporters on Friday that the draft rule was based on “technologies that are already entering the market and being constructed in plants today.” But the four she referred to in the committee hearing ranged from under construction to planned. None of them would sequester the carbon dioxide, and all would sell it".

Previously we have described CCS applications in Indiana, Wisconsin, and California.

Unpropitious news on CCS technology came from Norway the same day that EPA announced their new rule, regarding proposed plans to deploy CCS on an oil refinery. It was abandoning its carbon capture technology that it had announced in 2007.

"At both the national and international level, the development of technologies to capture and store CO2 has taken longer, been more difficult and more costly than expected," Oil and Energy Minister Ola Borten Moe told reporters.

Friday, September 20, 2013 in The New York Times - Energy & Environment

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 14, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Rendering of California High-Speed Rail station with bullet train.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself

The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

May 19, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Colorful historic homes in Madrid, Spain.

Spain Moves to Ban 66,000 Airbnbs

The national government is requiring the short-term rental operator to remove thousands of illegal listings from its site as part of an effort to stem a growing housing crisis.

30 minutes ago - The New York Times

People with bikes ordering at food trucks outdoors.

Raleigh Launches Greenway Food Truck Pilot to Enhance Park Experiences

Raleigh’s new Greenway Food Truck Pilot Program brings local food vendors to popular greenway locations to enhance park experiences, support small businesses, and encourage community use of public spaces.

2 hours ago - City of Raleigh

"Units for sale - contact your local realtor" sign in front of homes.

‘Displaced By Design:’ Report Spotlights Gentrification in Black Neighborhoods

A new report finds that roughly 15 percent of U.S. neighborhoods have been impacted by housing cost increases and displacement.

May 19 - Next City

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.