 Currently, neither Washington State nor the U.S. federal government has regulations in place for mercury emission reductions.As part of the same agreement between TransAlta and the Washington Department of Ecology, TransAlta agreed to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOx) by 20 percent beginning in 2009.This is two to five years earlier than TransAlta would have been required to reduce NOx emissions if an agreement had not been reached with the Department of Ecology.