Washington (Platts)--29Mar2013/512 pm EDT/2112 GMT

The US Environmental Protection Agency on Friday finalized its mercury and air toxics standards for new power plants, setting emissions limits for mercury, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, acid gases and certain metals.

EPA said the rule would "require new power plants to be among the most modern and cleanest ever built."

The finalized rule sets mercury emissions limits at 0.003 pound/GWh, a slightly higher rate than the 0.002 pound/GWh EPA initially set in December 2011.

Industry groups had complained that EPA's December 2011 rule would have prevented new coal-fired power plants from being built, since mercury emissions could not be reliably measured at such low concentrations.

The agency agreed in July 2012 to a "reconsideration" of the rule due to the complaints, and Friday's action finalizes the revisions.

Besides mercury, the finalized rule limits filterable particulate matter emissions from new coal-fired power plants to 0.09 pound/MWh and hydrogen chloride to 0.01 pound/MWh.

Sulfur dioxide is limited to 1.0 pound/MWh from coal-fired power plants, and lead is restricted to 0.02 pound/GWh.

"We project that these updates will result in no significant change in costs, emission reductions or health benefits" from its original December 2011 rule, EPA said in a fact sheet.

The mercury emissions limits for new power plants are more stringent than EPA has set for existing power plants.

The agency is facing litigation over its MATS rules for new and existing power plants, with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit taking up a petition from utilities and other groups, White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA.

The utilities, which have asked the court to strike down the rules, say the MATS regulations will endanger grid reliability by forcing the shutdown and retirements of several coal-fired power plants. The industry has estimated the rules will cost at least $10 billion.

The DC Circuit had suspended legal challenges in the case while EPA was performing its reconsideration of the rule for new power plants.

--Herman Wang, herman_wang@platts.com

--Edited by Lisa Miller, lisa_miller@platts.com

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