EPA Hearing on Carbon Emission Standards for New Power Plants 

Washington,· DC, May 24, 2012 

Testimony of Dylan Voorhees, Clean Energy Director, Natural Resources Council of Maine 

In Support of Proposed Carbon Rules 

Hello, my name is Dylan Voorhees and I am the Clean Energy Director for the Natural 

Resources Council of Maine (NRCM.) NRCM is a nonprofit membership organization founded 

in 1959 and dedicated to protecting, restoring, and conserving Maine's environment, now and for 

future generations. We have over 12,000 members and activists. Improving air quality, 

promoting clean energy and advocating for action on climate change are high priorities for 

NRCM- because they are high priorities for Maine. 

The EPA's proposed carbon pollution standards for power plants are essential to protecting 

Maine people and environment. Maine's environment is tied to our culture and economy in 

unique ways, making it especially critical that we address climate change and power plant air 

pollution as quickly and effectively as possible. 

So far, over 8,200 Maine people have commented to the EPA in support of these proposed 

carbon standards. That is an enormous number for our rural state. But this abstract quantification 

belies the fundamental fact that climate change is already negatively impacting real people in 

Maine--their lives and their livelihoods. 

Last week EPA's Administrator for Region I (New England) came to Maine to participate in and 

listen to a panel of diverse Maine leaders talking about climate change--prompted by these 

proposed standards. I'd like to share a few of their words so that you can have a sense of how 

much people in Maine have at stake. 

Harry Dwyer is a master logger and licensed forester from Fayette, Maine who works in the 

woods for his own small forestry business. Harry doesn't earn a salary, his pay comes from the 

time he spends logging the woods. He said: 

"I don't think climate change is a future problem. I think we are in the midst of it right now, 

and I've been absorbing the economic costs oflost work time when heavy rain shuts us down 

or when we are waiting for the ground to freeze to start a logging job. 

"Ten or fifteen years ago, no one had to worry about deer ticks [carrying Lyme disease] in 

Central Maine. Now I'm picking ticks off hours after I get home. They just weren't here 

because we used to have those cold winters that kept them at bay. 

"I am a parent, and the world we hand off to our children matters more to me than the lost 

work time and the economic cost of these things. Our asthma rates, especially childhood 

asthma are far higher than is morally or ethically defensible. If you have ever laid awake at 

night listening to your child struggle to breath, and had to go everywhere with an inhaler, 
wondering at what point are you going to head to the hospital because the inhaler and 

nebulizer are not helping, then you will agree that these rules are long overdue." 

Harry is one of the Maine people caught in the crossfire of warming and pollution-a vulnerable 

spot that will only get worse. The impacts ofloss of traditional winter, declining habitat for 

industrial softwood species, and increased invasive pests pose an enormous threat to the forest 

products industry in Maine. On top of that, his son is one of over 23,000 kids in Maine suffering 

from asthma-Maine has one of the highest rates in the country, perhaps because we sit 

downwind of so many coal plants and other industrial polluters. 

Indeed, these rules are important because they will help reduce the effect of climate warming on 

smog formation, which fuels childhood asthma attacks and other respiratory illness. Dr. Peggy 

Pennoyer was also a panelist at last week's Climate Leaders Roundtable i~ Maine. She said: 

"As a specialist in asthma, I see the health effects of air pollution daily on children and 

adults." 

But what she and many other physicians in Maine are really worried about is the situation getting 

worse. She cited a recent study by the Union of Concerned Scientists that predicted 15,000 

additional cases of serious respiratory illness in Maine by 2020 if warming trends are allowed to 

continue. 

Doctors, nurses, scientists and other experts say that carbon pollution is dangerous for children 

and the elderly especially. By advancing these standards- along with clean air safeguards that 

address mercury, soot, smog and other pollutants- the EPA is holding polluters accountable and 

protecting Maine families and others. 

I said Maine's culture and economy are uniquely tied to having a clean environment. This isn't 

just about our forests. Tourism is one of our biggest sectors, and people travel to Maine for clean 

air and beautiful coasts. Smog and climate change put these at risk. Believe it or not, Maine has 

the longest coastline of any of the lower 48 states (that's because our deeply wrinkled coasts 

cram many miles of ocean front into a very tight space.) Concerns about sea-level rise and 

erosion of coastal ecosystems and beaches are, again, not abstract. Communities up and down 

our southern coasts are struggling to hold onto beaches that are washing into the sea- with the 

real risk that tourism dollars wash away along with the sand. 

Our marine environment is also essential to our large commercial fishing sector, including a 

$375 million dollar lobster and shell-fishing industry. The acidification of our oceans as a result 

of unlimited carbon pollution could be an existential threat to this sector and the traditional way 

oflife it entails. According to Professor Mark Green, one of Maine's scientific experts on ocean 

acidification, excess carbon dioxide dissolving into our oceans has already raised the acidity pH 

of the ocean by 30%. This could increase to 300% within the next 50+ years. This is a huge 

threat to animals with calcium shells; not 'merely" clams and oysters, but an entire foodweb that 

depends on tiny microorganisms,from salmon to whales. Professor Green, who also owns a small 

shellfish business himself, is already finding evidence of impacts from corrosive seawater and 

acidic mudflats. 
Right now, with no national limits on industrial carbon pollution from power plants, most 

polluters are free to dump unlimited amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. This is unacceptable 

to states like Maine. 

In fact, Maine and other northeastern states have taken action themselves to limit carbon 

pollution from power plants through the innovative and highly successful Regional Greenhouse 

Gas Initiative (RGGI.) This market-based initiative is demonstrating that well-designed carbon 

pollution policies can be incredibly economically beneficial. Because of the way this program is 

designed, independent assessments have shown that Maine's economy will see a net benefit of 

$92 million as a direct result of RGGI. (Region wide the economy will see a $1.6 billion net 

benefit.) 

One of the reasons RGGI is particularly important and exciting is because it is tackling pollution 

from existing power plants. Existing power plants contribute more to climate change than any 

other sector. While we congratulate and applaud the EPA for these standards for new power 

plants, it is even more essential that standards for existing power plants come next. That is what 

the people of Maine need in order to preserve our way of life, our natural resource based 

economies, and protect the health of children. 

The power plants we build today will become the fleet of power plants our children will inherit 

for 30-40 years to come, along with the air and the climate that we are leaving. 

My six year old daughter asked me this week why l was travelling to Washington, DC. She has a 

vague sense of what I do, so she asked "Are you going to clean the air, daddy?" 

"Yes, I'm trying," I answered. "But to do that I have to persuade our leaders to make sure that 

we have less pollution." 

That's why I'm here--on her behalf, and on behalf of the members of NRCM and the people of 

Maine to support these rules and insist that we have strong carbon pollution standards from here 

out, and plead our elected officials let these and future rules move forward. Thank you. 
EPA & MAINE LEADERS ROUNDTABLE ON CLIMATE CHANGE 

Thursday, May 17, 2012 

Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, Maine 

Under the Clean Air Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed global warming 

pollution standards for new power plants. These standards will shape the next generation of power plants 

across the United States and positively impact air pollution and the rate of global warming. 

What does this mean for Maine? 

1. Welcome- Lisa Pohlmann, Executive Director, Natural Resources Council of Maine 

2. Addressing Carbon Emissions from New Power Plants- Curt Spalding, Administrator, EPA Region I 

3. Panel of Maine Leaders on Climate & Energy- Excerpts & Bios Attached 

4. Questions or Remarks from the Audience 

This event is not part of EPA's formal comment process for the proposed carbon pollution standards. For assistance with submitting comments 

by the june 25 deadline, you can visit www.nrcm.org or www.regulations.gov. 

Sponsors: 

Co-sponsors: 

PSR® r.~ '· Physicians for Social Respon.slbility 

~ .... u Maine Chapter 
Maine Leaders on Climate & Energy: Highlights from the Panel 

Harry Dwyer. Forester 

"I don't think climate change is a future problem. I think we are in the midst of it right now, and 

I've been absorbing the economic costs of lost work time when heavy rain shuts us down and 

when we are waiting for the ground to freeze to start a winter logging job. 

Ten or fifteen years ago, no one had to worry about ticks in central Maine. I'm now picking off ticks for 

hours after I get home. They just weren't here because we used to have those cold winters that kept 

them at bay. 

"I am a parent, and the world we hand off to our children matters more to me than the lost work 

time and the economic cost of these things. Our asthma rates, especially childhood asthma, are 

far higher than is morally or ethically defensible. If you have ever laid awake at night listening to 

your child struggle to breath, and had to go everywhere with an inhaler, wondering at what point are 

you going to head to the hospital because the inhaler and nebulizer are not helping, then you will agree 

that these rules are long overdue." 

Stephan Mulkey. PhD. President of Unity College 

"The World Meteorological Organization has found that the last decade was by far the warmest in 

recorded history worldwide. This applies generally to our part of New England. 

"We are well on track to have a 300% increase in the hydrogen ion [acid] concentrations ofthe 

oceans if we continue with this level of pollution before the end of this century. This represents 

an enormous biological challenge to the organisms that live and that many of us depend on 

economically in the state of Maine. 

"As the climate zones move, we are literally looking at the phenomenon that will cause the 

disintegration of our biological communities as we have come to know them ... That has profound 

implications for not only our understanding of nature, but also for our economy. 

"The thing that most concerns me as a scientist and as somebody who is concerned about 

educating a generation of people is the impact of positive feedbacks on the climate system form 

naturally occurring sources of C02. As we warm the climate, one of the things we are seeing 

repeatedly is rapid thawing of the permafrost of the arctic; evidence of northern soils emitting more 

C02 as they become more biologically active." 
Dr. Mar~aret Pennoyer. Asthma specialist 

"In Maine we have 93,000 adults and 23,000 children with asthma and 43,000 people with 

bronchitis. As a specialist in Asthma I see the health effects of air pollution daily on our children 

and adults. Children and our elderly are especially vulnerable to the effects of toxic smog and soot 

particles. 

"What a "bad air day" means for my young patient with asthma who wants to be a normal kid on the 

track team is that he must instead sit along the sideline and watch his team mates run during these "bad 

air days ... And my elderly patients find themselves struggling to breath and confined to home by these 

bad air days, unable to do the simplest of activities outside. 

"(Ozone] formation is sped up in warmer weather which is why we get so many more bad air days in 

the summer. That means warming temperatures are bad news for lung disease in Maine. 

"According to analysis of mid-range warming scenarios by the Union of Concerned Scientists, we 

could see 15,000 additional cases of serious respiratory illness in Maine by 2020." 

Sam Day. Sportsman and High-school student: 

"I am an avid fly fisherman. I spent 150 days on the water last year alone. I spend many early mornings 

heading out to the duck blind in Merrymeeting Bay. I'm also a season pass holder at Saddle back 

Mountain in Rangeley. Each year I see global climate change have a direct impact on the things 

that I love. It's not my livelihood, but it's what I live for." 

"A shorter winter and longer warm season mean warmer waters. Maine's precious cold water fish 

species can't cope with that. It has a direct impact on guides livelihoods and people working in the 

northern Maine woods." 

"I've travelled quite a bit throughout the US ... There is no place like Maine and we should strive to 

keep it that way. My generation will live with the impacts of the decisions that are made today 

and future generations will be stuck with the mess if we leave it behind. We really need to think 

about what kind oflegacy we want to leave." . 

In addition, two panelists, Professor Mark Green and former AG Steve Rowe, recently 

printed op-eds that reflect their remarks {included). 
ROUNDTABLE ON CLIMATE CHANGE PANELISTS 

Jestena Boughton, owner of Colony Hotel, Kennebunkport: Jestena is the third generation of the Boughton family 

to own and operate the Colony Hotel in downtown Delray Beach since 1935. She owns, with cousins John Martin and Hilary Roche, the 

Kennebunkport Colony Hotel, in the family since 1947. Born and raised in Delray, she spent summers at the Kennebunkport Colony Hotel 

working in almost every capacity until completing her graduate degree in Landscape Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania. Jestena, a 

licensed Landscape Architect, worked in the private and public sectors in Seattle for 10 years and was a Landscape Architecture professor at 

the University of Massachusetts, Amherst before moving back to Delray to manage the Colony Hotels. Her innovative teaching focused on 

ecological design and green building for sustainability. Under Jestena's leadership the Kennebunkport Colony Hotel became known as Maine's 

first Environmentally Responsible hotel. Jestena focuses her design expertise and experience by designing and supervising all renovation work 

at both hotels. Both Colony Hotels are National Trust Historic Hotels of America and Green Hotels of America. 

Anthony Buxton, energy and climate attorney, Preti Flaherty, Augusta: Anthony w. Buxton serves as chair 

of the firm's Energy and Utilities Practice Group. Tony creates solutions to business energy problems, including the challenge of high-energy 

costs, and represents some of Maine's largest energy consumers. Prior to joining Preti Flaherty, Tony served as a first lieutenant in the U.S. 

Army (Armor) and worked for future U.S. Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell. After law school, he co-founded the Energy Law Institute 

in Concord, New Hampshire, the nation's first renewable energy think tank. The Institute served the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. 

Department of the Navy, the National Conference of State Legislatures and others in developing state and federal policies to encourage 

renewable energy. Tony then served as law clerk to the Honorable Hugh H. Bownes of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston. 

Tony joined Preti Flaherty after completing his clerkship in 1980. 

Sam Day, high school student and outdoorsman, Hallowell: sam is a 15-year old freshman at Hall-Dale High 

School. He has spent his entire life living in the great state of Maine, fly-fishing its countless clean waterways, hunting ducks in its low 

marshes, and snowboarding on its mountain slopes. He is an active member of Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, Protect our Winters, and 

American Rivers. 

Harry Dwyer, Ghost Dancer Forestry, licensed forester and certified master logger, Fayette: Harry 

Dwyer lives with his son on a 300-acre farm in Fayette. He manages his own land working with natural stand dynamics and natural processes 

and owns his own professional forestry business, Ghost Dancer Forestry. Harry has been active as a board member with the Small Woodland 

Owners Association of Maine, Maine Forest Products Council, Kennebec County Farm Bureau and is a former town selectman. Harry served 

on forest policy advisory boards with the Baldacci and King Administrations and in 2001, received the Maine Forest Service's Outstanding 

Forest Steward Award. He has a BS in Agricultural and Resource Economics and a Master of Forestry from the University of Maine Orono. He 

is a licensed professional forester, certified master logger, licensed wood scaler and certified logging professional. He is active in the Forest 

Guild and is a current board member of the Kennebec Land Trust. Harry has horses, a dog named Joe, and enjoys playing baseball when he 

can. As a forester, logger and businessman, Harry has repeatedly spoken publically about the connect ion between a healthy economy and a 

clean environment. For his strong voice on behalf of Maine's environment and economy he received the Harrison L Richardson 

Environmental Leadership Award from the Maine Conservation Voters in 2012. 

Mark Green, Ph.D. ocean acidification scientist, St. 

Joseph's College, Peak's Island: Mark A. Green has been a Professor 

in the Department of Natural Science at Saint Joseph's College of Maine since 

2007. He received his BS from Allegheny College and his PhD in Oceanography at 

the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Professor Green has been 

studying ocean acidification for nearly 17 years, well before anyone even knew it 

was a problem. He was the first scientist to show that acid production in marine 

sediments is a significant mortality factor of small bivalves. He also is a small 

business owner-- Peaks Island Shellfish Company grows shellfish in suspended 

trays on rafts in beautiful Casco Bay, using sust ainable aquaculture methods. 

Martha Kirkpatrick, Rector of St. Margaret's Episcopal 

Church in Belfast, Lincolnville: Reverend Martha Kirkpatrick is the Rector of St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Belfast, Maine. 

She is also the Missioner for Environmental Stewardship for the Episcopal Diocese of Maine. From 1999 to 2003 she was the Commissioner of 

the Department of Environmental Protection under Governor Angus King, and was previously the Bureau Director for the DEP's Bureau of 

Land and Water Quality. She has a J.D. from George Washington University Law School and a Masters of Divinity from the Harvard Divinity 

School. 
David M arshall, City Councilor, Portland: Councilor David Marshall is Portland's Chair of the Transportation, Energy, and 

Sustainability Committee as well as an artist, founder of Constellation Gallery, and the President of the Maine Artist Collective. Marshall is the 

steward of Portland's energy service contract , an energy efficiency investment in 45 municipal building that will save over $1.7 million in 

energy each year while reducing the municipal carbon footprint by 32%. First elected in 2006, Marshall is now seeking a third term on the 

City Council. 

Stephen Mulkey, Ph.D. President of Unity College, Unity: Stephen Mulkey began serving as President of Unity 

College in July of 2011. From 2008 through 2011 he was a faculty member at the University of Idaho and served as director of the program in 

Environmental Science. As director, he led an initiative obtaining National Science Foundation funding for the creation of a new Professional 

Science Master's degree in Natural Resources and Environment al Sciences. With major f unding from NASA, he presently directs a stat ewide 

project focused on climate change education. From 1996 to 2008, Dr. Mulkey served as t enured faculty in the University of Florida's 

Department of Botany and as a research associate with the School of Forest Resources and Conservation. He also served as Director of 

Research and Outreach/Extension for the School of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of Florida, and as science advisor to 

the Century Commission for a Sustainable Florida. Dr. Mulkey co-founded and directed the International Center for Tropical Ecology, a 

nationally ranked graduate training and conservation program during his tenure at t he University of Missouri in St. Louis. He also worked for 

many years as a research associate for the Smit hsonian Institution, Tropical Research Inst itute. Dr. M ulkey holds a bachelor's degree in 

fisheries and w ildlife, a master's degree in ecology, and earned his PhD in ecology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1986. As a scholar of 

the interdisci plinary literature in climate change and sustainability, Dr. Mulkey is an active public interpreter of climate change science. His 

current research focuses on the role of landscape carbon stocks in climate mitigation. 

Buck O'Herin, Sheepscot Wellspring Land Alliance and registered guide, Montville: Buck O'Herin was 

the first Executive Director of the Sheepscot Wellspring Land All iance (SWLA} from 2006-2011 after serving on its Board from 1999-2006, and 

again presently. Buck has a M .S. in Environmental Education and a B.S. in Secondary Education. He has taught for t he National Audubon 

Society Expedition Institute, Unity College, Sterling College and The Community School in Camden, Maine. He is a Maine Guide and an avid 

backpacker and canoeist. He lives in Montville w ith his partner and daughter. 

Tony Owens, M.D. emergency room physician, Cape Elizabeth: Dr. Owens is a board certified emergency 

physician with over 30 years of practice experience in Maine. He is an active member of the Emergency Depart ment faculty at Maine Medical 

Center and is an associate professor of Emergency Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. He has degrees from Dartmouth and the 

University of Cincinnati. As an amateur naturalist, Tony is a volunteer with Maine Audubon's Vernal Pool Monitoring and Owl Survey 

programs. He is plant conservation volunteer w ith New England Wildflower Society and a former trustee of Hurricane Island Outward Bound 

and The Nature Conservancy. 

Peggy Pennoyer, M.D. allergy and asthma specialist, Scarborough. Dr. Pennoyer is a physician in Portland 

specializing in Allergy, Asthma and Immunology for 25 yea rs. She received her degree from the Columbia University College of Physicians and 

Surgeons. Dr. Pennoyer is a member of the American Lung Association in Maine's Leadership Board and a member of Maine's Healthy Air 

Coalition, a coalition of roughly 40 organizations committed to clean, health air. She is a Board member of Friends of the Scarborough Marsh, 

and a mother of t hree. 

Mark Power, commercial energy efficiency engineer, Trane, Portland: Mark is the Leader of the Trane Energy 

Services Team serving Maine and New Hampshire. He works with facil ity owners and operators to develop comprehensive energy retrofit 

projects that achieve energy conservation and operational savings. His team provides not only the t echnical expert ise requ ired to identify and 

to develop complex energy retrofit project s; but t hey also provide assistance with project financing and incent ives to allow building owners to 

achieve their conservation objectives. A Maine Maritime Graduate and Licensed Chief Engineer, Mark has 25 years of experience in 

commercial and industrial plant operations and maintenance as well as design experience in marine and mechanical engineering. He 

previously was an engineer for Bath Iron Works among others. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Maine. 

Steve Rowe, former Maine Attorney General, New Gloucester: Steve served eight years as Maine's Attorney 

General and two years as Spea ker of t he Maine House of Representatives. As a public servant , St eve earned a reputation for achieving result s. 

He led successful efforts to increase health care access, enforce environmental laws and reform mortgage lending pract ices. As Maine's 

Attorney General, he was party t o several lawsuits seeking to require the use of the Clean Air Act to address cl imate change. Steve is a West 

Point graduate and former Army officer who is known for his strong work ethic, integrity and t enacity. His broad background includes service 

as a litigation counsel for a major insurance company and marketing manager for a major manufacturing company. Steve has chosen to focus 

much of his current work as Counsel at Verrill Dana on providing mediation services to parties in dispute. Out side the office, Steve volunteers 

in areas such as early childhood education, domestic violence prevention and substance abuse prevention. For recreation, Steve enjoys 

camping and hiking with his wife, Amanda. 
MAINE VO CES 

Limit C02 emissions to save Maine oceans 

The absorption of the gas by 

the ocean makes seawater 

more acidic and less hospitable 

to seafood populations. 

STANDISH-In recent years, 

carbon dioxide gas has received a lot 

of attention. 

The biggest source of C02 comes 

from fossil fuel combustion, which 

contributes more than 13 trillion 

pounds to the atmosphere annually. 

C02 traps heat, and so this increase 

in atmospheric C02 is the reason 

that Earth's average temperature is 

warming. 

If this warming trend continues, 

average temperatures will continue 

to rise at least an additional2 to 8 

degrees in the next 90 years, and 

Maine's climate will be similar to that 

of Maryland and Virginia. Those 100.. 

plus-degree days of last summer will 

one day not look so bad. 

Unfortunately, scientists now recognize that a warming planet is only 

one consequence of our addiction to 

fossil fuel energy and all the C02 that 

it produces when burned. 

Because C02 dissolves readily in 

\ltater, nearly 25 percent of what is 

released to the atmosphere each year 

is absorbed by the world's oceans. 

For decades, scientists assumed 

that humankind had benefited from 

this "oceanic" C02 absorption, and 

indeed we have, as warming on land 

has undoubtedly been slowed as a result. However, we now know that you 

can't dissolve nearly 21 million metric 

tons of excess C02 into the ocean 

each day and not have some radical 

chemical changes. 

It is now universally recognized 

throughout the oceanographic community that the absorption of all this 

C02 by the ocean (550 billion tons and 

counting) has resulted in a decrease 

in pH and changes in seawater chemistry, a phenomenon that collectively 

is referred to as "ocean acidification." 

Wben C02 dissolves in water, it 

produces carbonic acid. From the 

Pacific waters of Hawaii, to the 

Atlantic waters of Bermuda and the 

Canary Islands, to the Arctic waters 

of Antarctica, humans have lowered 

the pH of the ocean by 0.1 units in the 

last 100 years. 

Wbile such a decrease may seem 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Mark Green is a professor of 

marine science at Saint Joseph's 

Co llege in Standish. 

small, the way pH is measured 

means that this change actually 

represents a 30 percent increase in 

acidity. Without targeted reduction in 

C02 emissions soon, the acid content 

of the ocean will increase by more 

than 300 percent in the neA-t 50 to 75 

years. 

The increase in seawater C02 and 

the corresponding decrease in pH are 

occurring at a rate not experienced in 

the ocean for at least 60 million years. 

The ocean as we know it will change 

drastically - and indeed, it already is 

changing. 

Microscopic animals known as 

pteropods, food for young salmon and 

whales alike, are dissolving in coldwater regions of the ocean. Experiments show that small lobsters have 

significant loss of shell strength when 

exposed to acidified seawater, making 

them more vulnerable to predators. 

Coral reefs are literally dissolving 

and will likely not survive past 2100. 

In areas of the Pacific Northwest, 

shellfish hatcheries are failing and 

there has not been a natural set of 

oysters in years because of corrosive 

seawater. Although ocean acidification has been recognized for about a 

decade, there are hundreds of peerreviewed publications showing the 

deleterious effects on flora and fauna 

of the sea. 

A fisherman 

motors his 

skiff out to a 

lobster boat. 

C02 dissolves 

in seawater, 

producing acid 

that lessens the 

strength of small 

lobsters' shells 

and makes them 

more vulnerable 

to predators. 

2012 File Photo/ 

The Associated PrQS& 

The state of Maine is as tightly 

coupled to the sea as any place on 

Earth. The shellfish industry alone 

generates more than $50 million 

annually and employs approximately 

3,000 harvesters and dealers. In 2011, 

Maine lobster landings exceeded 100 

million pounds, valued at more than 

$330 million. 

Still, the effects of ocean acidification are starting to be seen in Maine. 

From corrosive seawater to acidic 

mud, Maine is ell:periencing the early 

signs of acidification. Access to an 

ocean capable of sustaining healthy 

seafood populations is critical for 

Maine families and is·necessary 

to preserve the rich heritage and 

coupled history that Mainers have 

with the ocean. 

Maine residents need to support the 

efforts of the Environmental Protection Agency to limit carbon emissions 

from new power plants. The EP~s 

recently announced New Source 

Performance Standard will limit C02 

emissions from newly constructed 

power plants. These standards are 

critical to addressing climate change 

and saving the oceans. 

Ocean acidification is an undisputed fact that cannot be ignored 

and is a oowerful reason to reduce 

C02 emissions, especially here in 

Maine. Therefore, I urge Maine's 

congressional delegation to support 

the EP~s new carbon rule and not to 

support attempts to delay or block it 

in Congress. 

- Special to the Telegram 
6angor Daily News; Tuesday, April17, 2012, OpEd A5 

STEVE ROWE 

Support for carbon rule follows Maine,s.lead 

D uri.ngmyserviceasMaine's 

attorney general, I fl.led 

several lawsuits against the 

Environmental Protection 

Agency because of its failure to take action under the Clean Air 

Act to reduce emissions of climate· 

changing pollutants. 

In 2003, Maine and 10 other states joined with Massachusetts to challenge 

the EPA:s ruling that it lacked legal 

authority under the Clean Air Act to 

regulate heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions. We eventually won. 

This month, Maine and the nation 

celebrate the fifth anniversary of that 

landmark decision. 

The case, Massachusetts v. -EPA, remains one .of the most significant 

environmental decisions rendered 

by the U.S. Supreme Court. The court 

directed the EPA to decide whether 

carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions were pollutants 

under the Clean Air Act. The decision ultimately forced the EPA to 

regulate those emissions. This occurred at a t ime when pressure from 

large corporate polluters prevented 

Congress from tackling carbon emissions. 

Coincidentally; earlier this month, 

despite intense pressure from those 

same polluters - most from the coal 

industry -the EPA announced a new 

rule that would place the first nationwide limits on carbon pollution from 

new power plants. This is an essential 

step to protect the health of tbe American people as well as our nation's en' 

vii:-onment and economy. 

The new rule is not the only essen- tial step, howevm: At some point soon, 

the EPA will need to lake action to reduce carbon pollution from existing 

power plants as. well. Aftet·all, existing 

plants represent the largest source of 

heat-trapping pollution in the United 

States. 

Each and ever y year, power plants 

emit more than 2 billion tons of dangerous carbon and other pollutants 

into the air. The buildup of this pollu-

.tion creates warmer temperatures. 

Warmer temperatures increase the 

risk · of harmful smog levels. More 

·smog means more chronic respiratory 

problems, asthma attacks and se.rious 

complications for people with lung disease. 

Unquestionably; children face the 

highest rislt. Each year, thousands of 

Maine children experience asthma 

attacks. Because infants and children 

generally breathe more rapidly than 

adults, they have a higher rate of exposure to pollutants in the air. More, 

ove1; because children's immnne systems and organs a re nnt mature, they 

are more susceptible to the deleterious health effects of air pollution, 

including reduction in lung function 

and oU1er permanent damage. 

other adverse health effects associated with climate change and warmer temperatures include an increase in 

waterborne diseases as well as animal-borne diseases such as I,yme disease and West Nile virus. Due to increasing temperatures and changes in . rainfall patterns, mosquitoes, ticks 

and other disease carriers survive wanner winters and expand their 

range, bringing health threats with 

them. 

By issuing the rule with new power 

·plant carbon emission standards, .the 

EPA is .simply doing its job under the 

·Clean Air Act. Reducing harmful emissions and holding polluters accountable is wh11t Americans want and need 

the agency to do. 

-Together with new clean car standards that will cut pollution. from new 

vehicles nearly in half by 2025 (while· 

helping rebuild the Amei"ican auto in- dustry and reducing g<jsoline costs), the new power plant standards will 

make significant reductions in harmful carbon pollution that threatens 

public health and causes climate 

change. 

When Sen. Ed Muskie led the creation of the Clean t\ir Act inore than 

four decades ago, he did not believe 

that government should compromise 

either on setting st.andaxds for environ- mental protection or on its responsibil- ity to achieve those stnndarrls. That's 

why'he created a law that set deadlines, 

required the use of best available tech .. nology and established health-related 

air quality levels. Through this monumental accomplislunent, Sen. Muskie <'lefined the 

environment as a core value for the nation. He believed that the air we 

breathe sho\Jld be clean enollgh to pro· 

teet the health of the most sensitive 

among us. He also believed that no 

person or entity had a ."right:• to pollute. 

It's good to know the EPA is on the 

job taking action consistent with the 

fundamental values expressed by Sen. 

Muskie in the Clean Air Act. Because 

of that action, the health of people in 

Maine and throughout our nation will 

be bett~r protected. · 

Steve Rowe served as Maine~~ attorneygeneral fmrn 2001 lo 2009.