Overview
- In a final NOx rule for gas turbines, EPA dropped the monetized estimates for reduced PM2.5 and ozone that a 2024 proposal had valued at up to $670 million.
- EPA’s regulatory analysis says past dollar figures conveyed a false sense of precision as overall emissions fell, and a spokesperson said the impacts will be considered but not monetized “at this time.”
- Language disclosed in internal emails is being inserted across Office of Air and Radiation regulatory analyses to state that benefits from PM2.5 and ozone are no longer monetized.
- Environmental and legal advocates warn the shift could ease rollbacks of pollution limits and invite court challenges, while the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business voices praised a “common-sense” recalibration.
- The NOx rule is less stringent than the prior proposal for some gas plants and, under the new approach, does not assign dollar values to avoided hospital visits, lost workdays, or premature deaths linked to these pollutants.