WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued the first national standards for power plant emissions of mercury and toxic air pollution.
The standards will reduce emissions of mercury and other dangerous pollutants such as arsenic, acid gas, nickel, selenium and cyanide by relying on widely available, proven pollution controls that are already in use at more than half of the nation's coal-fired power plants, an EPA release said Wednesday.
The agency estimates the safeguards will prevent as many as 11,000 premature deaths and 4,700 heart attacks a year and reduce other health risks as well.
"By cutting emissions that are linked to developmental disorders and respiratory illnesses like asthma, these standards represent a major victory for clean air and public health -- and especially for the health of our children," EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said.
The Mercury and Air Toxics Standards are based on the latest data, and give industry considerable flexibility in implementation through a phased-in approach and the ability to use existing technologies, the EPA said.
