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As state officials move forward in drafting a policy to reduce mercury from
coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania, PennEnvironment was appointed
to the Department of Environmental Protection’s newly formed
Mercury Rule Workgroup, to assist in crafting the final proposal.
Last year, PennEnvironment joined a statewide coalition of organizations
advocating for 90 percent mercury reductions from all Pennsylvania coal-
fired power plants and collected 12,000 comments from the state’s residents
showing support for such a proposal. PennEnvironment joins roughly 25
representatives from environmental, public health, sporting, business and
utility interests which are involved in the process. The meetings commenced
in Harrisburg on October 14.
Multiple studies have shown that existing technologies can achieve
90 percent cuts in mercury pollution from power plants, and such cuts are
urgently needed given the public health threat posed by mercury pollution—
especially to young children and women of child-bearing age—
due to mercury contamination in fish. |
