Maryland lawmakers push for Obama-era coal pollution standards

ANNAPOLIS, Md., Oct. 25, 2017 - Sixty-three Maryland senators and delegates are urging Gov. Larry Hogan to implement Obama-era standards for coal-fired power plants in the state. The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) has proposed renewing expired water pollution permits for three coal-fired plants in Dickerson, Chalk Point and Morgantown that would allow the discharge of toxic pollutants into Maryland waterways. “Many of these pollutants, once in the environment, remain there for years,” the state legislators wrote in a letter to Hogan. “There are simple and affordable ways for coal plants to reduce or eliminate their toxic waste, and many coal plants across the country have already done so.” The Obama administration issued new requirements aimed at reducing toxic waste in 2015 under the Clean Water Act, but the lawmakers say President Trump’s EPA halted the improved requirements in April. They request that the state adopt the EPA toxic coal waste requirements issued in 2015.