Supplement To Clean Air Interstate Rule Proposed

Washington, D.C. — The Bush Administration has released a supplement to its proposed Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). The supplement includes details about cap-and-trade programs for power plants that states may implement to achieve required reductions in emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will take public comments on the proposed supplement for 45 days after publication in the Federal Register. The agency also will hold a public hearing on June 3 in the Washington, D.C. area to receive comments on the supplement. CAIR would require electric power plants in the eastern United States to significantly reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide.

EPA also has extended by six months the deadline for final action on a petition from North Carolina that the state filed under the Clean Air Act. The petition requests that the agency make a finding that emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from large electric generating units in 13 states are contributing significantly to air pollution.