Washington, D.C. – The Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today in response to the EPA’s proposed Greenhouse Gas Standards and Guidelines for Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Plants.
“Effective emission reduction is necessary and is both technologically and economically feasible, given the availability and cost-effectiveness of the broad portfolio of clean energy and energy efficiency technologies,” said BCSE President Lisa Jacobson. “BCSE has long supported a federal, economy-wide approach to reducing GHG emissions. Sharp declines in U.S. power sector emissions over the past decade have demonstrated that there are many cost-effective technologies readily available to reduce emissions.”
While BCSE urges federal legislative action to ensure durable policy for the long-term, it believes that EPA has an obligation to respond to sound science and court mandates.
Regulations should be set in a manner that sends strong market signals to decarbonize the power sector and that allows covered units to decide their own technology pathway. In addition, states and utilities have already adopted power sector decarbonization goals. Federal regulation should recognize existing policies and not hinder planned projects and investments. BCSE members recommend a flexible and technology-inclusive approach and seek clarifications in the final rule to facilitate compliance.
Finally, BCSE noted that the federal government can assist in addressing some of the issues mentioned in the submission by enhancing coordination between agencies, including EPA, and by enacting critical federal permitting and siting reforms that will allow critical energy infrastructure to be built.
Media contact: Lizzie Stricklin
Email: lstricklin@bcse.org
Phone: 202.785.0507 ext. 1504