DHEC says greenhouse gas plan is too costly

By Sammy Fretwell - The (Columbia) State

COLUMBIA -- South Carolina's environmental agency is fighting federal rules to control greenhouse gas pollution that contributes to global warming.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control says the proposed rules will be expensive for South Carolina — and, as written, could hurt the state's struggling economy. DHEC has written the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at least twice in the past two months to complain about the rules, records show.

“This proposal would have a detrimental effect on our state's economy at a time when unemployment is currently 12.1 percent and is only expected to increase,” according to a Nov. 24 letter from DHEC to the EPA.

Many states worry about the cost and the time it will take to put the rules in place. But most generally support the EPA's plan, and a number of them have not raised as many economic questions. Critics said South Carolina regulators should worry more about public health and environmental concerns than how new greenhouse gas regulations would affect industries.

But South Carolina's objections are substantial.

In an interview last week, DHEC's Bob King said his agency mostly is concerned about the cost and the limited time states would have to get ready. The agency might have to regulate hundreds of new sources of greenhouse gas pollution from businesses, officials said.

The federal government has never required regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, that trap the earth's heat and cause surface temperatures to rise. Greenhouse gases released naturally help keep the earth warm. But greenhouse gas from cars and industrial plants increases the amount of heat trapped.

The looming greenhouse gas rules impose tougher standards on new automobiles and light trucks beginning with the 2012 model year. But after the rules take effect this spring, for the first time, they will trigger greenhouse pollution control requirements on new and expanding industries, including power plants, factories and other “stationary” sources.

The rules for automobiles and light trucks are supposed to be finalized by April, at which time the EPA would say when they become effective for industries. A Dec. 23 letter from DHEC to the EPA said South Carolina “will not be able to implement” the air pollution rules by this spring “or even several years thereafter.”

DHEC is concerned because the rules could cause a burden on South Carolina by slowing down the time it takes to process a range of pollution permits. The agency's staff would be taxed at a time of shrinking state revenue and limited personnel, agency officials have told the EPA.

“We believe there is a lot more activity that would have to be permitted under the rules than (EPA officials) are perceiving — and that burden comes back to the states,” King said in an interview Thursday with The (Columbia) State newspaper.

How to combat global warming is a subject of intense debate worldwide. Many people say tight controls are needed to limit carbon dioxide and other pollutants that are causing temperatures to go up. Increasing global temperatures have melted ice caps, caused sea levels to rise and threatened wildlife, many scientists agree. But some businesses and conservatives say tighter regulation could cost money and hurt the economy.

The EPA effort to control carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases results from a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said greenhouse gases are pollutants that can be regulated under the U.S. Clean Air Act. The question had been in dispute for years until the court's ruling.

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has taken a lead role in Congress on the issue. He wants Congress, rather than the EPA, to be in control of limiting carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. He's pushing energy legislation to do that. Graham says having a law, rather than EPA regulations, would provide more flexibility in fighting global warming. A law, for example, could urge more development of nuclear power, which doesn't produce greenhouse gases. A law also could offer federal incentives for the use of wind or solar power.