The transport of air pollution into the state of Connecticut is a significant issue. Because of the magnitude of the transport problem, Connecticut has long advocated for timely implementation of upwind emissions reductions. Below are the developments of two recent actions utilizing the Clean Air Act (CAA). Specifically, CAA Section 176 and Section 126.

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CAA Section 176A

CAA Section 126

Nine Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), on December 10, 2013, to require upwind states to reduce air pollution generated within their borders, which causes asthma attacks, respiratory disease, and other public health problems downwind.

The multi-state action is aimed at requiring nine upwind states – Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia – to be a ‘good neighbor’ by reducing air pollution emissions that are carried by prevailing winds and contribute to the formation of ozone to the north and east.  The petition seeks long-overdue commitments from the upwind states to protect the health of downwind residents and to level the playing field for businesses.

The petition asks EPA to require the nine upwind states to join in what is known as the “Ozone Transport Region” (OTR).  Under the federal Clean Air Act, states added to the OTR would have to take actions to limit air pollution consistent with the efforts of the downwind states through the use of readily available control technologies and reliance on cleaner fuels to generate power.

States who filed the petition on December 9, 2013 – all current members of the OTR – are:  Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.  Pennsylvania joined the petition on December 10, 2013.

Under Section 176A of the federal Clean Air Act, states can petition the EPA to add any state to an air quality region such as the OTR if there is reason to believe it is the source of pollution-causing violations of air quality standards elsewhere.  The EPA Administrator is required to approve or disapprove such a petition within 18 months. On November 3, 2017 the EPA denied the petition.

Latest Information: 

In the DEEP petition to EPA,  DEEP asks for an abatement of emissions from the three coal-fired units in York County, PA, because they alone significantly contribute to ozone levels that exceed the 2008 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard in Connecticut. 

Granting the petition would require the Brunner Island Steam Electric Station to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, a precursor pollutant of ozone, such that the plant no longer emits at an amount that contributes to ozone exceedances in Connecticut.  The petition asks that meaningful reductions be achieved in no more than three years.