|
White Chairs
2nd Hearing on Reducing Mercury Emissions in PA
Will Recall DEP
Secretary for Third Hearing to Answer More Questions
HARRISBURG -- The
state Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, chaired by Sen. Mary
Jo White (R-21), today held the second public hearing on how best to craft a
state program to reduce mercury emissions.
Those
testifying included representatives of coal, business, health and environmental
organizations. Senator White will be scheduling a third hearing to take further
testimony from state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary
Kathleen McGinty, as well as public health experts.
"Several
committee members have serious concerns over statements made by Secretary
McGinty at the committee's first hearing last week which have apparently
misrepresented both the position of the mineworkers and the coal association, as
well as the timing of when the secretary learned of these positions," said
White.
In March 2005,
the United States became the first nation in the world to regulate mercury
emissions from coal-fired power plants. States have until November 2006 to
indicate to the federal government how they intend to implement the mercury
emission reduction rule. Under bipartisan legislation (SB 1201) introduced by
White and Senator Raphael J. Musto, Democratic chair of the Senate
Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, Pennsylvania coal-fired power
plants will be required to reduce mercury emissions by 86 percent no later than
2018, and could utilize a cap and trade program. This approach provides
incentives for power plants to comply earlier and achieve greater emission
reductions. A plan proposed by DEP does not allow for trading and incorrectly
labels the federal trading provision as "illegal."
Senator White
said the two hearings have highlighted several concerns with the DEP plan:
-
The DEP
plan will provide no added environmental or health benefits to PA residents.
-
It will
lead to higher energy costs, affecting not only manufacturers and other
large energy users, but residential customers, who are facing the expiration
of rate caps in the coming years (most in 2010).
-
It does not
protect Pennsylvania bituminous coal jobs, but in fact may encourage fuel
switching to bituminous coal mined in West Virginia and Kentucky.
According to
the United Mine Workers of America, the DEP plan may be unconstitutional with
its intended preference for bituminous coal.
"Unless we are
putting a dome over the Commonwealth, we will continue to receive air from
states that are not playing by the same rules," said White.
George Ellis,
president of the Pennsylvania Coal Association representing bituminous coal
operators, testified that the PCA view sharply differs with DEP's contention
that its proposal encourages use of Pennsylvania coal and protects coal jobs.
Despite his organization's repeated requests, DEP has not provided any type of
analysis to substantiate its claim.
Testifying on
behalf of the United Mine Workers of America, Eugene M. Trisko told the
committee that key advantages of Senate Bill 1201 over the DEP plan include
incentives for plants to over-control mercury emissions, so that power providers
can trade credits to under performing plants to help pay for major investments
in pollution control technologies. The state rule, members were advised, may
cause smaller generators to shut down and lead to the loss of electric
generating capacity and mining jobs.
Dr. Jack W.
Snyder, a public health information specialist, testified that no credible
evidence exists supporting speculation that U.S. power plants account for any
increase in, or for any more than one percent of, global mercury emissions. He
further stated that policymakers have not been provided credible evidence
supporting speculation that any women, children, or fetuses have been harmed, or
have been placed at increased risk of harm, as a result of eating fish obtained
from bodies of water in Pennsylvania or other parts of the United States.
The
Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry urged the committee to examine
what, if any, incremental benefits would be achieved under a state-specific
mercury rule.
Clean Water
Action urged the committee to hear directly from public health officials who
have studied the impact of mercury on human health.
"Any plan to
reduce mercury emissions must be the result of sound science and honest
dialogue, and achieving that is the bipartisan goal of this committee," said
White.
Below are video files of the May 2 hearing -- the
second in a series of two -- by the
Senate Environmental Resources and
Energy Committee on a proposal to craft a state program to reduce mercury
emissions. The hearing is presented in two parts.
Note: Each file is large.
Part 1
Part 2
Sen. Mary Jo White (R-21), chair of the
Senate
Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, makes a point during a May
2 hearing on crafting a state program to reduce mercury emissions.
|
