Document ID: EPA-HQ-OAR-2009-0491-4549
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2011-07-15T04:00Z

pp. 34-35
ozone concentrations for monitoring sites in the Transport Rule covered states (including the six states for which EPA issued a supplemental proposal for ozone-season NOX requirements) in 2014.
     For annual PM2.5, the average reduction across all monitoring sites in covered states in 2014 is 1.41 microgram per meter cubed (ug/m[3]) and the greatest reduction at a single site is 3.60 ug/m[3].  For 24-hour PM2.5, the average reduction across all monitoring sites in covered states in 2014 is 4.3 ug/m[3] and the greatest reduction at a single site is 11.6 ug/m[3].  And finally, for 8-hour ozone, the average reduction across all monitoring sites in covered states in 2014 is 0.3 parts per billion (ppb) and the greatest is 3.9 ppb.  See section VIII for further information on air quality improvements.  
 EPA estimated the Transport Rule's costs and benefits, including effects on sensitive and vulnerable and environmental justice communities.  Table III-4, below, summarizes some of these results.  Further discussion of the results is provided in preamble section VIII, below, and in the Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA).  Estimates here are subject to uncertainties discussed further in the RIA.
   
Table III-4.  Summary of Annual Benefits, Costs, and Net Benefits of the Final Transport Rule in 2014
                            (Billions of 2007$)[a]
                                       
                                       

   

   

   
   

   
   

                                       
                                  Description
                  Transport Rule Remedy (Billions of 2007 $)
                                       
                               3 % discount rate
                               7 % discount rate
Social costs
                                                                          $0.81
                                                                          $0.81
Total monetized benefits[b]
                                                                   $120 to $280
                                                                   $110 to $250
Net benefits (benefits-costs)
                                                                   $120 to $280
                                                                   $110 to $250
[a] All estimates are for 2014, and are rounded to two significant figures.
[b] The total monetized benefits reflect the human health benefits associated with reducing exposure to PM2.5 and ozone and the welfare benefits associated with improved visibility in Class I areas. The reduction in premature mortalities account for over 90 percent of total monetized PM2.5 and ozone benefits.
                                       
                                       
 As a result of updated analyses and in response to public comments, the final Transport Rule differs from the proposal in a number of ways.  The differences between proposal and final rule are discussed throughout this preamble.  Some key changes between proposal and final rule are that EPA:
   * Updated emission inventories (resulting in generally lower base case emissions).  See section V.C.

pp. 432-433
minus social costs) as shown in Table VIII.C-3 for the Transport Rule is approximately $120 to $280 billion or $110 to $250 billion (3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, respectively) in 2014. Implementation of the rule is expected to provide society with a substantial net gain in social welfare based on economic efficiency criteria.
        A listing of the benefit categories that could not be quantified or monetized in our benefit estimates is provided in Table VIII.C-4.
Table VIII.C - 3 Summary of Annual Benefits, Costs, and Net Benefits of the Final Transport Rule in 2014
                            (Billions of 2007$)[a]
                                       
                                       

   

   

   
   

   
   

                                       
                                  Description
                  Transport Rule Remedy (Billions of 2007 $)
                                       
                               3 % discount rate
                               7 % discount rate
Social costs
                                                                          $0.81
                                                                          $0.81
Total monetized benefits[b]
                                                                   $120 to $280
                                                                   $110 to $250
Net benefits (benefits-costs)
                                                                   $120 to $280
                                                                   $110 to $250
[a] All estimates are for 2014, and are rounded to two significant figures.
[b] The total monetized benefits reflect the human health benefits associated with reducing exposure to PM2.5 and ozone and the welfare benefits associated with improved visibility in Class I areas. The reduction in premature mortalities account for over 90 percent of total monetized PM2.5 and ozone benefits.
                                       

The annualized regional cost of the rule, as quantified here, is EPA's best assessment of the cost of implementing the Transport Rule. These costs are generated from rigorous economic modeling of changes in the power sector expected from the rule.  This type of analysis, using IPM, has undergone peer review and been upheld in federal courts.  The direct cost includes, but is not limited to, capital investments in pollution controls, operating expenses of the pollution controls, investments in new generating sources, and additional fuel expenditures.  The EPA believes that these costs reflect, as closely as possible, the additional costs of the Transport Rule to industry.  The relatively small cost associated with monitoring emissions, reporting, and recordkeeping for affected sources is not included in these annualized cost estimates, but EPA has done a separate analysis and estimated the cost to be about $26 million (see section XII.B, Paperwork Reduction Act).  However, there may exist certain costs that EPA has not quantified in these estimates.  These costs may include costs of transitioning to this rule, such as the costs associated with the retirement of smaller or