The Secretary of Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental
Protection, John Quigley, spoke to NFIB and other business groups this week, about
his agency’s development of restrictive new regulations on carbon emissions in the
state. President Obama, through the EPA,
has imposed a mandate to tighten those emissions and individual states will
draft their own regulatory language to comply.
These “Clean Power” rules are expected to have a dramatic effect
on coal-fired plants and coal mining in Pennsylvania, which is a staple of our
state’s energy portfolio, making up almost 40% of the supply. If there is an energy shortage because
alternative sources are unable to make up the difference, there could be price
spikes and reliability issues. That would impact small businesses in the state,
especially manufacturers.
Secretary Quigley expressed a belief that the required
reduction in coal plant emissions can be met by the compliance dates although
the coal industry does not agree.
Quigley says he still does see a future for coal energy in Pennsylvania
along with a diverse mix of alternatives. He is expecting there will be
improvements in carbon capture equipment technology that can be installed at
coal-fired plants.
The Secretary discussed a study by Penn State released this
summer on climate change in Pennsylvania that he says shows an accelerating warming
trend that will increase the state’s temperature by 5.4 degrees between 2000
and 2050. He believes this will have a
dramatic effect on the economy of the state, shutting down ski resorts and cutting
into the sales of ski mobiles. He
believes it will harm the maple sugar industry and the timber industry which he
says employs 60,000 people. Quigley says that there will be climate disruption
with extreme hot and cold periods, including ice storms that will bring down
power lines. He says we will see wetter
winters and dryer summers. The Secretary
stated that temperatures in Philadelphia will feel like Richmond and Pittsburg
like Washington, D.C.
NFIB submitted comments citing its concerns over tighter
regulations on carbon and how that could affect small businesses which depend
on reliable and reasonably priced energy. You can read those comments by CLICKING
HERE.
