EPA Finalizes Nation’s First Greenhouse Gas Reporting System

On September 22, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released details of their new reporting system for tracking the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from large polluters in the United States. Under the new rules, facilities which emit over 25,000 tons of CO2, such as power plants and refineries, will be required to report their GHG emissions to the EPA beginning in January, 2011. At this level, the reporting system will cover approximately 10,000 facilities which are responsible for 85 percent of U.S. GHG emissions. “This is a major step forward in our effort to address the greenhouse gases polluting our skies,” said EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. “The American public, and industry itself, will finally gain critically important knowledge and with this information we can determine how best to reduce those emissions.”