Seven Pa. coal-fired plants among worst greenhouse-gas emitters

Seven Pennsylvania coal-fired power plants are among the 100 highest industrial emitters of greenhouse gases in the United States, according to data released Wednesday by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Ranking 12th on the national list is FirstEnergy Generation Corp.'s Bruce Mansfield plant in Beaver County, the state's biggest.

The other plants are Brunner Island, Conemaugh, Hatfield's Ferry, Homer City, Keystone, and Montour. No New Jersey plants made that top 100 list.

The EPA posted information reported for 2010 by about 6,700 major industrial emitters into an online tool that allows users to see greenhouse-gas emissions - expressed as "carbon dioxide equivalents" - in their region and beyond.

Among the states, Pennsylvania facilities reported the second-highest emissions amounts. Highly industrialized New Jersey was far down the list, with emissions comparable to those of Montana.

Users can sort the data by facility, industrial sector, type of gas emitted, and location - including views by state and by county. The database is at http://ghgdata.epa.gov

Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for the EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, said the data tool was a powerful public resource for individuals, communities, businesses, and investors.

"What we can bank on is that better information will lead to a better-informed public, which will lead to better environmental protection," she said.

Mark Durbin, a FirstEnergy spokesman, said he wasn't surprised that Bruce Mansfield ranked high.

"There is a direct correlation of the amount of CO2 emitted with the amount of coal combusted," he said. Since Bruce Mansfield "is one of the largest coal-fired plants in the nation, it stands to reason that the CO2 we report is a large number."

The 2,490 megawatts of electricity the plant produces, he said, is enough to power about 1.5 million homes.

What the list doesn't show, he said, is that Bruce Mansfield is also one of the most highly controlled power plants, with equipment to reduce mercury, sulfur dioxide, and other emissions.

While these pollutants have come under increasing regulation, carbon dioxide has not, although many experts expect that federal legislation or regulation will eventually target power-plant emissions of the gas.

Greenhouse gases contribute to climate change. President Obama has announced the goal to reduce U.S. emissions to 20 percent below 1990 levels by 2020.

Emissions from agriculture, transportation, and smaller industry are not part of the EPA data set.

The national picture the data do draw shows that power plants were the largest source of greenhouse gas, responsible for 72 percent of emissions - 2,324 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents. Overall, carbon dioxide accounted for the largest share of emissions - 95 percent, followed by methane at 4 percent.

Environmental groups praised the release.

The EPA data are "just one example of how Pennsylvania is ground zero for pollution from coal-fired power plants," said Nick Sifuentes, a spokesman for the Sierra Club, which has launched a "Beyond Coal" campaign advocating renewable energy.

Jan Jarrett, president of Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, said that "we all knew" coal-fired power plants emitted large amounts of carbon dioxide, "but to see it like this is an eye-opener."

"We've got to do whatever we can to minimize" the emissions, Jarrett said. What's needed is "more and more renewable energy, it's greater energy efficiency." In the case of larger coal-fired plants, which are the workhorses of the power grid, the statistics show a need for better technology, she said.

"We've seen before that what you measure, you can manage," said Eileen Claussen president of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, a national nonprofit.

Two decades ago, when the EPA published similar data about industrial releases or toxics, Claussen said, "the public, policymakers, and business all got a better handle on toxic emissions across the U.S. and how to reduce them."

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