An article in the March 31, 2012 edition of the British magazine The Economist explains how new rules restricting greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants, would in effect threaten the construction in theU.S. of any new coal-fired power plants.
The rules impose a limit of 1000 lb (454 kg) of carbon dioxide for each megawatt hour of electricity that is generated. The rules try to accommodate future coal-fired plants by allowing them to go above the carbon emissions limit for the next 10 years, as long as they can afterwards compensate for the difference by implementing effective pollution controls. However, The Economist explains, carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is not yet commercially viable, and it is unlikely to be commercially viable 10 years from now either. CCS technology would capture carbon dioxide from power plants and store it where it will not enter the atmosphere.
The article states that new techniques have made it possible to extract natural gas relatively cheaply from shale beds in recent years, leading to an increase in theU.S.domestic supply of natural gas and a decrease in prices. In addition, natural gas is a fuel that is less threatening to the environment than coal, meaning that efficient new gas plants can easily meet the proposed carbon emissions standard, compared to new coal plants. As a result of the availability and falling prices of natural gas, and tighter environmental regulations, utilities have been favoring natural gas over coal anyway. Therefore the new rules will only accelerate the shift from coal to natural gas.
Now that theU.S.administration has put out rules regarding new power plants, it will also have to draft rules that will specify the carbon dioxide emissions policy for existing power plants, including those that are powered by coal.
