ADEQ and and Arkansas Public Service Commission offer stakeholders meeting open to public on June 25, 2014

FOR RELEASE: June 9, 2014

Stakeholders group to meet on proposed carbon pollution reduction rule

The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) will hold a stakeholders’ meeting on June 25 to explore options for complying with the newly proposed federal air rule regulating carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants.

The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held from 9 a.m. to noon at ADEQ, 5301 Northshore Drive, North Little Rock.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on June 2 issued its Clean Power Plan proposal, which for the first time regulates carbon pollution from existing power plants under section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act.  EPA plans to finalize the rule by June 1, 2015. States must submit their implementation plans – which can include a mix of options including efficiency improvements at existing power plants, energy efficiency on the part of customers, renewable energy and more -- to EPA by June 30, 2016. In some cases, extensions may be allowed.

“We’re glad EPA is giving states flexibility to develop their own plans to achieve the required emissions reductions,” said ADEQ Director Teresa Marks. “We realize this will take a lot of work and we look forward to starting the stakeholder process. Our stakeholders really represent a broad swath of Arkansas from environmental and health groups to industry representatives and state agencies.”

            Representatives from the following groups, selected by Marks and APSC Chairman Colette D. Honorable, will serve as stakeholders:

1.  Entergy Arkansas, Inc.

2.  Southwestern Electric Power Company

3.  Oklahoma Gas & Electric

4.  Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas

5.  Plum Point Energy Associates

6.  Union Power Station- Entegra Power Group, LLC

7.  North Little Rock Electric

8.  Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc.

9.  Southwest Power Pool

10.  CenterPoint Energy Arkansas Gas

11.  Arkansas Advanced Energy Association

12.  Arkansas Electric Energy Consumers

13.  Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce

14.  Arkansas Environmental Federation

15.  Sierra Club

16.  Audubon Arkansas

17.  Arkansas Department of Health

18.  Arkansas Attorney General’s Office

19.  Arkansas Energy Office

20.  Arkansas Municipal League

21. Arkansas Public Policy Panel

The group will develop recommendations for Arkansas’ statewide implementation plan. The group is expected to meet every other month through June 2015 and possibly more frequently after that date.

Meetings will be announced through news releases and will be posted on ADEQ’s website. Information on the first stakeholders meeting, held on May 28, can be found online athttp://www.adeq.state.ar.us/air/branch_planning/carbon_pollution.htm or by clicking on Carbon Pollution Standards for Power Sector under the Hot Topics column on ADEQ’s website: www.adeq.state.adeq.ar.us. The page also includes information on the proposed rule and a listserv those interested can subscribe to for updates on the process.

More information, including a copy of the proposed rule, is also available on EPA’s website athttp://www2.epa.gov/carbon-pollution-standards.

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