Coal Plant Denied Air Permit Over Carbon

Kansas became the first state in the nation to deny an air permit to a new coal-fired power plant because its carbon dioxide emissions would contribute to global warming, according to various press reports today.

The move is seen as one of the first effects of a landmark Supreme Court decision this year, which held that carbon dioxide is a pollutant governed by the Clean Air Act. Unlike emissions that cause acid rain, smog and mercury contamination of fish, however, no limits have been set for emissions of CO2.

Several Democratic presidential candidates have said that they would require all new coal-fired power plants to be built in such a way that they can capture their carbon dioxide emissions. That way, as technology is developed, and geology explored, to safely pump the waste gas underground, it can be kept locked out of the atmosphere.

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