The state Environmental Management Commission’s air quality committee has set a special meeting to consider a rule to limit carbon dioxide pollution from the electric power sector in North Carolina.
The meeting at 9 a.m. June 15 will be in the Archdale Building in the ground floor hearing room, 512 N. Salisbury St., Raleigh. The limited seating for the public will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. The public also can attend online at https://bit.ly/3hN2a5x using password NCDEQ or by calling 415-655-0003, using access code 161 204 1508.
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The committee is expected to review the petition and recommend action by the full Environmental Management Commission.
The petition for rulemaking, filed on behalf of Clean Air Carolina and the North Carolina Coastal Federation by the Southern Environmental Law Center, proposes that the state participate in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative as the primary mechanism to reduce carbon dioxide, or CO2, emissions from the electric sector.
The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative is a joint effort for Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia, and the first mandatory, market-based carbon dioxide emissions reduction program in the country, according to RGGI.
The petition for rulemaking for the June 15 meeting “proposes regulations that establish the necessary framework for North Carolina to join the regional effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve a 70% reduction in emissions from the energy sector by 2030.”
The petition echoes a report released earlier this year, Power Sector Carbon Reduction: An Evaluation of Policies for North Carolina, which examined carbon-reduction policies for the state’s power sector. The report recommends that the state participate in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative along with taking other measures to reduce carbon pollution such as moving to renewable energy, as previously reported. The report was prompted by the North Carolina Clean Energy Plan under Gov. Roy Cooper’s Executive Order No. 80 signed October 2018.
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Without action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the effects of climate change on the state will be severe, according to the petition.. “Unabated, climate change will exact substantial costs on our environment, our economy, and the lives of all North Carolinians. Scientists urge aggressive action now to reduce carbon dioxide (‘CO2’) emissions in order to have a chance at avoiding the worst impacts of climate change.”
Those wishing to make a presentation on the petition for rulemaking should submit an official request to Michael Abraczinskas, Division of Air Quality director, by 5 p.m. June 7 to michael.abraczinskas@ncdenr.gov or by mail to 1641 Mail Service Center, 217 W. Jones Street, Suite 4000, Raleigh, NC 27609-1641.
Additional information, including the agenda and supporting information, may be found on EMC’s website.
