Stephanie Salmon, Artemis Strategies; Jeff Hannapel & Christian Richter, The Policy Group, Washington, D.C. WASHINGTON ALERT
New Utility MACT Standards Finalized D
OPPONENTS OF EPA REGULATIONS SAY THEY COULD POTENTIALLY HARM INDUSTRY POWER.
espite active protesting from industry groups, the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards,
also referred to as Utility MACT, was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Dec. 21 with little changes from the original proposal in March. The rule orders coal-fired utilities
to decrease the amount of mercury emitted when coal is burned, with a compliance deadline of 2015. Industry groups, including the American Foundry Society, argued some utilities will need more time to comply with the rule. The expense of these changes may cause some manufacturing plants to close down and numerous rolling blackouts due to a lack of energy production. “Utilities must replace power
plants, install compliance equipment and build new natural gas pipelines and transmission lines,” the industry groups stated in the letter. “Tis is going to cost tens of billions of dol-
ON THE HILL
Senate Urged to Oppose Natural Gas Transportation Bill
More than 50 manufacturing orga- nizations are asking U.S. Senators to oppose the New Alternative Transporta- tion to Give American Solutions Act of 2011 (S. 1863). The act will provide cred- its, via consumer tax subsidies, for the purchase of natural gas vehicles and development of natural gas infrastruc- ture for the transportation market. Opponents of the bill, including the American Foundry Society, argue consumer tax subsidies artificially increase the demand for natural gas in automobiles and result in higher energy costs for manufacturers and agriculture businesses.
“As manufacturers who compete glob- ally and rely heavily on the use of natural gas as both an energy source and an essential raw material, we are concerned that such legislation could result in higher
costs, causing industrial ‘demand destruc- tion’ that forces good U.S. manufacturing jobs to overseas competitors,” the group wrote in a letter to the Senate.
The letter further argues natural gas is currently a competitive fuel without consumer tax subsidies.
Championed by energy magnate T. Boone Pickens, the bill was introduced in the Senate in November by Majority Lead- er Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
Congress Unanimously Approves Veterans’ Jobs Bill
Both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate approved legislation in No- vember that provides a variety of benefits to veterans and offers employers tax cred- its of up to $9,600 for hiring unemployed veterans. Specifically, the VOW to Hire Heroes Act provides employers a tax credit of up to $5,600 for hiring veterans who have
been unemployed for at least six months, a $2,400 credit for hiring veterans who have been unemployed for more than four weeks but less than six months, and a credit of up to $9,600 for hiring a dis- abled veteran who has been unemployed for more than six months, which would increase the existing Wounded War- riors Tax Credit. The Wounded Warriors program applies to employers that hire veterans with service-connected dis- abilities who have been unemployed for at least six months.
This bill also requires the U.S. Department of Labor to examine how to translate military skills and training to civilian sector jobs and will work to make it easier to obtain professional licenses and certifications.
President Obama signed the bill into law on Nov. 21.
To learn more about the VOW to Hire Heroes Act, visit
www.veterans.house.gov/vow.
January 2012 MODERN CASTING | 21
lars and require a reasonable number of years for a smooth transition to a cleaner generating fleet.” As part of EPA’s announcment,
President Obama directed the EPA to give plants more time to either install the needed equipment or shut down old plants. In its statement, EPA said that a fourth year to comply would be “broadly available.”
Te act intends to cut emissions of
mercury and 70 other toxins. Te new act allows power plants to emit 1.2 lbs. of mercury per million BTUs of energy produced, based on a formula set out in the Clean Air Act. Supply industry groups pushed for limits closer to 1.4 lbs./million.
A copy of the Utility MACT rule is available at
www.epa.gov/mats.
The Utility MACT requires industrial facilities to comply with upgrades to reduce mercury emissions.
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