COMMISSIONER SNYDER MEETS WITH OBAMA ADMINISTRATION For Release: December 5, 2011 Contact: Elizabeth Menhart, Communications Director/Tourism (724-852-5210)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Greene County Commissioner Pam Snyder met last week with officials from President Obama’s administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to discuss the EPA’s proposed Utility Maximum Achievable Control Technology rule, which would regulate mercury and other toxic emissions from power plants.
Snyder met Nov. 30 with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson in Washington, D.C., to discuss potential job losses and higher energy prices that could be caused by the new regulations, which will directly target coal-fueled power plants and possibly adversely impact coal mining jobs. Under the rule, power plants would have until 2014 to reduce toxic air pollutants by installing controls such as scrubbers and other emission-reducing equipment. The EPA is expected to issue the final Utility MACT rule on Dec. 16.
"The last thing Greene County needs right now are government regulations that will drive up energy costs for families and businesses in our community,” Snyder said. “If these new EPA regulations aren’t fixed, more than 180,000 Americans will lose their jobs each year. Projected job losses in Pennsylvania from just two of these new rules could be more than 7,000 jobs per year, and electricity rates could increase by 13 to 17 percent."
Snyder met with Jackson, top agency staff and a representative from the White House to talk about the regulations, which would be some of the most expensive ever written by the EPA over the past three decades. Snyder also met with U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., while in Washington to ask him to work with the White House and EPA to fix these regulations.
"I have always supported clean air, but EPA needs to strike a balance as the rules are imposed," Snyder said. “We don’t need to lose more jobs and raise energy prices for our neighbors who are struggling to make ends meet. There are easy fixes that can be made to these regulations. For instance, EPA should give utilities enough time to construct and install pollution controls. A simple change like that will reduce air pollution, but not force utilities to shut down power plants or change to more expensive fuels."
"EPA regulations should not hurt families or cost more jobs," Snyder added. "I was pleased with Administrator Jackson’s willingness to listen to my concerns, and I am hopeful these regulations can be fixed before it’s too late."
Snyder’s meeting with the Obama administration was facilitated by the American Coalition of Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), which supports affordable energy, environmental progress and the use of American coal. Snyder is an active member in ACCCE’s advocacy group, Energy for Pennsylvania Jobs. For more information, visit www.EnergyforPennsylvaniaJobs.org.
For general information, please contact the Information Services at 724-852-5399 / Toll Free: 1-888-852-5399. County Office Building, 93 E. High Street, Waynesburg, PA 15370
