Ceres President Mindy Lubber Statement on EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxics Rule

(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) Boston, MA - Dec 21, 2011 - In response to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) announcement today of its final Mercury and Air Toxics Rule for Power Plants, the following statement was issued by Mindy S. Lubber, president of Ceres and director of the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), a network of 100 institutional investors across North America managing more than $10 trillion in assets:

“We applaud the Environmental Protection Agency and President Obama on today’s historic step to curb hazardous emissions of mercury, lead, arsenic and acid gases from the nation’s oldest and dirtiest power plants.   The new rule will unleash investment in our nation’s infrastructure and create jobs up and down the supply chain – from manufacturing centers across the country all the way through to the construction sites where high-polluting power plants will receive long overdue upgrades or be replaced with cleaner generation.   Multiple studies show that our nation’s power companies can meet this standard, protecting the health of our most vulnerable citizens, and keep our lights on. Hands down, clean air is a boon to us all and putting this new air pollution rules into effect at a time when new jobs and economic growth are desperately needed is the right thing to do.”   Several recent studies show that utility companies compliance with EPA’s MACT and CASPR air pollution rules is feasible and manageable and would also stimulate significant job gains. Based on recent estimates that the power sector will invest almost $200 billion in total capital improvements over the next five years, total employment created by these investments is estimated at 1.46 million jobs, or about 290,000 jobs on average in each of the next five years.”   To speak with a Ceres expert on the Rule, contact Meg Wilcox at 617-319-6457 cell, or wilcox@ceres.org.   For more information on Ceres reports regarding EPA’s clean air rules, go to: ceres.org/letsgettowork.   Ceres is an advocate for sustainability leadership. It leads a national coalition of investors, environmental groups and other public interest organizations working with companies to address sustainability challenges such as global climate change and water scarcity. Ceres also directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), a network of 100 institutional investors with collective assets totaling about $10 trillion. For more information, visit www.ceres.org and www.incr.com.