Key New Source Review Air Rule Proposal Dropped

EPA has announced that it will drop its new source review (NSR) rule initiative for power plants, freeing the Obama administration to require upgrades to pollution control measures at the nation's power plants. NSR is intended to require consideration of air pollution control devices when there are changes made at power plants, but not when routine repairs or maintenance is being conducted. Deciding whether to characterize a change as a routine repair, rather than a modification to the power plant, has long been a contentious issue, with power plant operators arguing for the former and states and environmentalists arguing for the latter. At stake are potential upgrades that run in the hundreds of millions of dollars. To learn more about NSR, visit the EPA website.

West Virginia's NSR program is found in its State Implementation Plan, or SIP. The NSR regulations are found at 45 CSR 14 and 45 CSR 16