EPA may sideline hydrogen in its final rule to limit power plant pollution amid industry pushback and legal uncertainties.
The move — expected by both industry advocates and environmentalists — probably won’t weaken the rule. But it remains unclear what technology will replace hydrogen to underpin EPA’s final standard for new intermediate gas plants.
“With the intermediate [standard] for new gas, what we’ll be looking for is: How does EPA define the subcategory, and what pollution control measures are they using to set the emissions rate?” said Frank Sturges, an attorney with the Clean Air Task Force.
In its May draft rule, EPA took the unusual step of identifying two benchmark technologies — carbon capture and “green” hydrogen — to be the basis of its standard for new large, frequently operated gas plants. That means the final rule will likely fall back on carbon capture to underpin a strong pollution standard for such “baseload” facilities.
