December 2011 Archives

What are the economic, health and political significance of President Obama's mercury standards for power plants?

EPA announced this week the first-ever national standards for mercury and other toxic air pollution from power plants. The regulations will require electric utilities throughout the country to install technology to control the pollution. Many power plants already comply with the rule, but others--namely older, coal-fired plants--will face challenges complying within the three-year timeline required by the Clean Air Act.

EPA said the rules will slash 90 percent of mercury pollution from coal-fired power plants and in turn save 11,000 premature deaths, according to its draft rule announced in March. EPA said then that the rule will cost almost $10 billion a year and have annual health benefits between $90 billion.

What are the factors that EPA should consider when implementing the rule? What are the longer term implications of this rule in terms of both public health and the economy? What, if anything, should Congress do in reaction to this rule?

15 responses: William O'Keefe, Charles Driscoll, Tim Peckinpaugh, Amy Harder, Peter Iwanowicz, David Kreutzer, Lance Brown, Susan Dudley, Craig Rucker, Gene Karpinski, Michael Brune, Susan Tierney, Tom Wolf, Scott Sklar, William O'Keefe

What's at stake for EPA, clean-energy initiatives, and other energy issues like the Keystone XL pipeline during this week's spending debate?

Congress must approve legislation by Friday to keep the government running. One of the most hotly contested issues is whether or not any spending measure should include a provision that would require President Obama to immediately approve the Keystone pipeline, which if built would send 700,000 barrels of oil sands from Canada to the Gulf Coast. Other controversial issues include whether EPA's clean-air rules should be eliminated or delayed and whether renewable-energy tax incentives should be extended.

What factors should influence lawmakers' and the administration's ultimate agreement about what makes the cut in a spending bill--and what doesn't? What does this policy of negotiating via spending bills mean for Washington's ability (or lack thereof) to negotiate policy? How can Washington simultaneously balance deficit cutting, job creation, environmental protection, and clean energy? Or should one issue be prioritized before another?

9 responses: Amy Harder, Richard Revesz, Denise Bode, Brigham McCown, Peter Iwanowicz, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Brent Erickson, Rhone Resch, William O'Keefe

Should Congress renew tax credits for renewable energy and ethanol?

Several clean-energy tax credits will expire at year's end if Congress does not renew them for at least one more year. A Treasury Department grant program for renewable energy such as solar power is set to expire, as well as tax credits for the ethanol industry. A key production tax credit for renewable energy--especially wind power--expires next year unless Congress renews it. Legislation introduced in the Senate would add a new tax credit for natural gas-powered trucks.

Should Congress renew some or all of these tax provisions? What factors, such as the deficit and job creation, should influence lawmakers' decisions on this? How will this debate affect the broader discussion over the federal government's role in developing nascent clean-energy technologies?

18 responses: Don Furman, Bill Meadows, Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., Amy Harder, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Phyllis Cuttino, Brent Erickson, Chuck Gray, Margo Thorning, Brian Keane, Jacqueline Savitz, William O'Keefe, Denise Bode, Rhone Resch, Leticia Phillips, Brian Wynne, Scott Sklar, Andrea Luecke