US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has voiced its concerns over the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s newly finalised standard for particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5). The new standard reduces the level of particulate matter below 2.5μm diameter permitted in flue gas emissions to 9μg/m3 from 12μg/m3. The PCA says that it is concerned that the new rule may restrict US cement producers’ operations and ‘further complicate’ their efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
President and CEO Mike Ireland said “This new rule strikes at the heart of the US cement industry's ability to deliver on the Biden Administration's infrastructure goals, as it would lead to fewer hours of operation at plants, which would mean layoffs, as well as less American cement and concrete at a time when the country needs more.” He added “The previous EPA standard on particulate matter emissions — arrived at by government officials working with industry — significantly drove down those emissions by 37% over the last 20 years. This downward trend would have continued without the new standard imposed."
However, EPA administrator Michael Stanley Regan said that the updated standard will prevent 4500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays annually by 2032. Regan said “We do not have to sacrifice people to have a prosperous and booming economy.”
