2010 Progress Report - International Joint Commission

Progress Report 2010
the total allowances allocated each year must not
exceed the national cap. Every year, each individual
source must hold enough allowances to cover its
annual emissions. Unused allowances can be sold
(traded) or banked (saved) for future use. The
banking of allowances gives sources the fl exibility
to determine how they will comply with program
requirements over time.
In 2009, the ARP’s SO 2
program affected 3,572
electric generating units (EGUs). The Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) allocated approximately
9.5 million SO 2
allowances under the ARP. Actual
emissions from affected sources were 5.7 million
tons of SO 2
(see Figure 2), down from 7.6 million
tons in 2008 and well below the 2010 cap of 8.95
million tons. Part of this reduction was due to a lower
demand for power in 2009 as well as new add-on
pollution control technology to meet recent federal and
state regulations, primarily in the eastern half of the
country. Additionally in 2009, the number of banked
allowances grew, from about 8.5 million available
for 2008 compliance to approximately 12.3 million
available for 2010 and future years.
In addition to the electric power generation sector,
emission reductions from other sources not affected
by the ARP, including industrial and commercial
boilers and the metals and refi ning industries, and
the use of cleaner fuels in residential and commercial
burners have contributed to an overall reduction in
annual SO 2
emissions. National SO 2
emissions from
all sources have fallen from nearly 26 million tons
in 1980 to less than 11.4 million tons in 2008
(see www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/trends).
Figure 2. U.S. SO 2
Emissions from Acid Rain Program
Electric Generating Units, 1990–2009
18
16
15.7
14
Mmillion Tons
12
10
8
6
11.2
10.2
7.6
5.7
4
2
0
1990 2000 2005 2008 2009
Source: US EPA 2010
Key Commitments and Progress: Nitrogen Oxides Emission Reductions
Canada has met its commitment to
reduce NO x
emissions from power
plants, major combustion sources
and metal smelting operations by
100,000 tonnes below the forecasted
level of 970,000 tonnes. This commitment is based
CANADA
on a 1985 forecast of 2005 NO x
emissions; in 2008,
industrial emissions of NO x
totaled 664,755 tonnes.
Transportation sources contribute the majority of
NO x
emissions, accounting for nearly 53% of total
Canadian emissions, with the remainder generated
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