On February 8, a federal appeals court struck down the Bush Administration's attempt at regulating mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. Under the Bush plan, utilities would have been given maximum flexibility, within a cap- and -trade program, to reduce mercury emissions.
The decision is a blow to the electric power sector, which has spent four years preparing to implement the new program that was created under the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR). Environmentalists viewed the decision as a major victory that will require EPA to hold utilities accountable for more stringent reductions in mercury emissions.