In an escalating war of words, the Environmental Protection Agency responded to the American Public Power Association and its August 3 filing of claims against the proposed Electric Generating Unit Maximum Achievable Control Technology (EGU MACT) rule.

Read the full story on the APPA filing: MACT Ruling Faces Utility Opposition.

EPA Press Secretary Brendan Gilfillan said in a statement for Breaking Energy, that contrary to APPA claims, the MACT Rule would not hurt reliability of power transmission or transfer excessive costs to consumers.

“Our comprehensive analysis indicates that the standards–which rely on pollution control technologies already in use at facilities across the country–would have minimal impact on reliability or affordability nationally,” Gilfillan said.

Instead, he said, the rule will only help the public as it slowly eliminates harmful emissions from the air. Elimination of particulate matter, in which the APPA said the regulators’ approach was excessive, is particularly important for public health, Gilfillan said.

EPA has taken a series of steps under the Clean Air Act that will save tens of thousands of lives and prevent hundreds of thousands of heart and asthma attacks each year by slashing harmful emissions of pollutants like mercury, smog and particulate matter.

“EPA has worked with FERC since we began developing these standards to ensure we maximize public health benefits while minimizing costs, including assessing any impacts they would have on electric reliability and affordability,” he added.

FERC, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, will be able to comment on the MACT rule, during the interagency process, before it is finalized.

In a recent analysis, the ICF International also claimed that the MACT rule would not hurt the power industry as much as the APPA says it would. Read more: Emissions Rules Could Boost Technology Additions.

Photo Caption: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on March 10, 2011 in Washington DC.