Aug. 30, 2008
Sweden's Secretariat on Acid Rain and the European Environmental Bureau have concluded that slashed emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from Europe's biggest power plants would lead to "very significant" health benefits, based on study results published just prior to EU Environment Committee discussions on revising the bloc's 1996 integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC ) directive.
The green groups claim that the cost of reducing harmful emissions is just one third of that generated in health gains resulting from cutting pollution. Another noteworthy claim is that the application of best available techniques (BATs) at problem facilities would also have a dramatic impact on pollution.
The study results could help to persuade parliamentary rapporteur Holger Krahmer to propose even stricter cuts for large combustion installations. The EU's electricity sector is one faction that strongly objects to such proposals.
