How Obama's power plant emission rules will work


The pollution controls form the cornerstone of President Barack Obama's campaign to combat climate change and a key element of his legacy.




Some questions and answers about the proposal:


Q: How does the government plan to limit emissions?


Unlike with new power plants, the government can't regulate existing plant emissions directly. Instead, the government will issue guidelines for cutting emissions, then each state will develop its own plan to meet those guidelines. If a state refuses, the EPA can create its own plan.


Q: Why are these rules necessary?

A: Power plants are the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. Environmentalists and the White House say without bold action, climate change will intensify and endanger the public's well-being around the world. In its National Climate Assessment this year, the administration said warming and erratic weather will become increasingly disruptive unless curtailed.

"This is not some distant problem of the future. This is a problem that is affecting Americans right now," Obama said in May.

The United States is only one player in the global climate game. These rules won't touch carbon emissions in other nations whose coal plants are even dirtier. But the White House believes that leading by example gives the U.S. more leverage to pressure other countries to reduce their own emissions.


Q: How steep will the reductions be?

A: We don't know.

The administration hasn't said whether it will set one universal standard or apply different standards in each state. But Obama's senior counselor, John Podesta, said the reductions will be made "in the most cost-effective and most efficient way possible," by giving flexibility to the states.




