By Chevazz G. Brown
The EPA’s Clean Power Plan and Its Potential Impact on Texas
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n August 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its final Clean Power Plan (CPP) as part of the federal government’s effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing U.S. power plants by nearly a third from 2005 levels by 2032.1 To reach this goal, the CPP establishes emission reduction goals for each state.2 Texas, the nation’s leader in carbon dioxide emissions and energy production, must reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 33% from 2012 levels by 2030.3 If the CPP survives pending legal challenges, the potential impact on the electric generation industry, particularly in Texas, will be profound. Over the past century, power generation in the U.S. has seen a dramatic evolution due largely to market conditions, regulatory forces, and technological advances. Amid this change, the harmful effects of man-made greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide, has been the subject of much discussion. Global temperatures are rising at unprecedented rates and humans are to blame for it.4 As temperatures rise, scientists predict and already see cataclysmic effects on our environment, including rising sea levels, destruction of ecosystems, worsening of weather patterns, and poor air quality affecting public health. In 2013, the U.S. emitted approximately 5,278.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the earth’s atmosphere.5 Texas led the nation, accounting for approximately 12%, nearly twice as much as the second largest emitter, California.6 Considering population size, Texas ranks 15th on a per-capita basis.7 Until implementation of the CPP, no federal law directly regulates carbon dioxide emissions. This is true despite passage of the federal Clean Air Act (CAA) more than 50 years ago.8 Originally enacted in 1963, the CAA is a comprehensive law regulating air emissions to protect public health and public welfare and to regulate emissions of hazardous air pollutants. The EPA bases its authority to promulgate its CPP on Sec-