The generators were turned off over the weekend. The Bellingham City Council is expected to consider a moratorium on new generators next week. Violating the smog standard could prompt a new, more onerous federal regulatory regime on new industries locating in the area. Smog irritates the lungs and can cause difficulty in breathing. It is created when sunlight reacts with pollutants pumped into the air by combustion.
Natural gas is far cleaner than diesel, but it still pollutes.
BP also will supply cleaner diesel and gasoline to its customers, and install better permanent pollution-control equipment than regulators could have insisted on in a regular permit. In return, he said the company can fire up its gas turbines right away, as its permit goes through the usual regulatory process. Plant operators will plant trees to soak up the greenhouse gas. Conservation of both power and water also are essential, Locke said, especially as a possible record drought looms. The energy situation is getting worse as we watch our reservoirs run dry.