Regional Market Trends Forum

Curt Spalding

April 23, 2015

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CLEAN POWER PLAN 

Proposed Carbon Pollution 

Standards For Existing 

Power Plants
Outline

• President’s Climate Action Plan

•Background on Clean Air Act Section 111(d)

• Setting State Goals

• Flexibilities Available to States

• Costs and Benefits

•How to comment

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President’s Climate Action Plan

•Reduce carbon pollution from 

power plants

• Prepare the U.S. for the impacts 

of climate change

• Lead international efforts to 

address global climate change

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This Proposal Deals With the Largest Source 

of GHG Emissions in the U.S.

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Reducing Carbon Pollution From Power Plants

President’s Directive to EPA:

Develop carbon pollution standards, regulations or 

guidelines, as appropriate, for:

1. New power plants

• Proposed: January 8, 2014

2. Modified and reconstructed power plants

• Proposed: June 2014

• Final: Summer 2015

3. Existing power plants

• Proposed Guidelines: June 2014

• Final Guidelines: Summer 2015

• Federal Plan Proposal: Summer 2015

• State Plans due: Summer 2016

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• Establishes a mechanism for controlling air pollution from 

stationary sources

• Applies to sources for which the Administrator, in her judgment, 

finds “causes, or contributes significantly to, air pollution which 

may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or 

welfare”

• Can apply to new, existing, modified and reconstructed sources. 

• More than 70 stationary source categories and 

subcategories are currently regulated under section 111

• A full list of sources regulated under section 111 can be found in 40 

CFR Part 60

EPA’s Regulatory Approach

Clean Air Act Section 111

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• Lays out different approaches for new and existing 

sources

• New sources under section 111(b)

• Federal standards for new, modified and reconstructed 

sources

• Existing sources under section 111(d) 

• State programs for existing sources that are equivalent to 

federal guidelines

•Applies the “Best System of Emissions Reduction” 

(BSER)

• Feasibility

• Costs

• Technology

• Size of Reductions

EPA’s Regulatory Approach

Clean Air Act Section 111

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States and Communities with 

Programs That Reduce Carbon Pollution

State programs that reduce carbon 

include carbon cap and trade programs 

and energy efficiency and renewable 

energy standards or goals. 9
Building Block Strategy EPA Used to 

Calculate the State Goal

Maximum Flexibility:

Examples of State 

Compliance Measures

1. Make fossil fuel-fired

power plants more 

efficient

Efficiency Improvements Efficiency improvements

Co-firing or switching to natural 

gas

Coal retirements

Retrofit CCS (e.g.,WA Parish in 

Texas)

2. Use lower-emitting 

power sources more

Dispatch changes to 

existing natural gas 

combined cycle (CC)

Dispatch changes to existing 

natural gas CC

3. Build more zero/lowemitting energy sourcesRenewable Energy

Certain Nuclear

New NGCC

Renewables

Nuclear (new and up-rates)

New coal with CCS

4. Use electricity more 

efficiently

Demand-side energy 

efficiency programs

Demand-side energy efficiency 

programs

Transmission efficiency 

improvements

Energy storage

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State Performance Goals

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

Coal Residual

Oil

Natural

Gas

Nuclear Solar Wind Hydro

Average CO2 Emissions Rates (lbs

CO2/MWh)

Fuel Type

2013 Average CO2 Emissions Rates 

(lbs CO2/MWh)

Note: Average emissions rates are rounded to the nearest hundred. 

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration. http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=74&t=11

Pounds of Carbon Dioxide (lbs CO2)

Megawatt Hour (MWh) of Electricity Produced

2012

2030
State Performance Goals (lbs/MWh)

State 2012 Fossil 

Emission Rate1

Interim Goal (2020 -

2029 average)2

Final Goal (2030 

and thereafter)2

Connecticut 844 597 540

Maine 873 393 378

Massachusetts 1,001 655 576

New Hampshire 1,119 546 486

Rhode Island 918 822 782

1 From Goal Computation Technical Support Document, Appendix 5 – 2012 Emissions Rate and Building Block Application

2 From Table 1 to Subpart UUUU of Part 60 – State Rate-Based CO2 Emission Performance Goals, Proposed 12
Flexibilities Available To States

• Timing: 

• Up to 15-year window in which 

to plan for and achieve 

reductions in carbon pollution. 

• Up to two or three years to 

submit final plans. 

• Form of goal: States can use either 

a rate-based or mass-based goal.

• Single or multi-state plans: States 

can collaborate and develop plans 

on a multi-state basis.

• Selection of measures: 

• States will choose how to meet 

the goal through whatever 

collection of measures reflects 

its particular circumstances and 

policy objectives. 

• State measures may impact and, 

in fact may be explicitly 

designed to reduce, CO2

emissions from utilities on a 

regional basis.

• EPA would support building off 

existing reduction programs. 

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22%

12%

-20%

-71%

-93%

-100%

-80%

-60%

-40%

-20%

0%

20%

40%

New England Economic Growth and ISO New England 

System Emissions, 1999-2012

New England GDP Total Generation CO2 Emissions NOx Emissions SO2 Emissions

Data Sources: 2012 ISO New England Electric Generator Air Emissions 

Report, US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis

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Next Steps

Milestones Dates

Final Standards for New 

Sources

Summer 2015

Final Standards for Modified 

and Reconstructed Sources

Summer 2015

Final Emissions Guidelines for 

Existing Sources

Summer 2015

Proposal for Federal Plan Summer 2015

State Plans due Summer 2016

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Addressing Methane &

VOC Emissions

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Addressing Methane and VOC Emissions 

• New Source Performance Standards (NSPS)

• We are looking at cost-effective, commonsense requirements for new and modified oil and gas 

sources that are significant emitters of methane and VOCs.

• Control Technique Guidelines 

• CTGs provide states guidelines for requiring reasonably available control technology (RACT) to achieve 

VOC reductions from existing sources in ozone nonattainment areas that are classified as Moderate 

and above, and in states in the Ozone Transport Region 

• Voluntary Efforts

• EPA plans to expand the successful Natural Gas STAR Program by launching a new partnership in collaboration 

with key stakeholders by the end of this year

• Under the new partnership, EPA plans to enter into voluntary agreements with individual companies that 

achieve the following:

• Encourage innovation and ambitious commitments with flexible achievement mechanisms

• Provide accountability and transparency for reduction commitments, and 

• Track progress toward specific methane emission reduction activities

• Feedback

• EPA has been talking with states and tribes to to get feedback that will help us as we develop the rule. 

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Schedule

Milestones Dates

Propose Voluntary Program Spring 2015

Propose NSPS for public comment Summer 2015

Issue draft CTGs for public comment Summer 2015

Launch Voluntary Program End of 2015

Finalize NSPS Spring 2016

Publish CTGs Spring 2016

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