Power plant pollution of all kinds fell more last year than in any year since 2020, according to new EPA data released this week.
The agency attributed the cuts in power sector criteria pollutants, mercury and carbon dioxide to “changes in the mix of fossil fuel-fired generation and improved efficiency.”
“This snapshot of progress over the past year shows we are moving in the right direction, but more progress is needed,” said Joe Goffman, EPA’s newly confirmed air chief. Goffman, who has overseen EPA’s air policy since the earliest days of the Biden administration while awaiting Senate confirmation, promised “to build on our progress and protect public health.”
EPA’s data shows that emissions rates at coal-fired power plants were down 7 percent for sulfur dioxide (SO2) and 3 percent for nitrogen oxides (NOx) in 2023 compared with 2022. The agency saw an 18 percent drop in coal-fired generation in the lower 48 states compared with the previous year, while natural gas power surged 8 percent year on year.
