Retrofitting early protected North Carolina ratepayers.
David Hoppock (david.hoppock@duke.edu) is a research analyst and Sarah Adair (sarah.adair@duke.edu) is an associate in research at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions in Durham, N.C.
While utilities and utility commissions across the country grapple with how to comply with more stringent federal air emission regulations, North Carolina coal-fired power plants have already invested in pollution controls that will ease compliance and could save consumers millions, thanks to a 2002 state law to improve air quality. North Carolina’s experience suggests that other states might discover advantages to moving ahead of proposed and foreseeable federal regulations, especially when these efforts can simultaneously address noncompliance with existing federal regulations and state environmental goals.