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Public Interest: Mercury
The Department of Environmental Quality is concerned about elevated levels of mercury in Utah, and has begun a program to control airborne mercury emissions.
In May of 2005, EPA issued a final rule, Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR), to address mercury emissions from coal-fired electric generating units larger than 25 megawatts. By initial estimates, air-born mercury emissions from this source category account for roughly 48% of all domestic mercury emissions. Other sources include gold mines, hazardous waste incinerators, medical waste incinerators, and salvage operations (mercury switches in cars).
- Get General Information About Mercury.
- View a Description of the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) and its Applicability to Utah.
Mercury Rules Adopted by Air Quality Board at its March 14, 2007 Meeting
On March 14, 2007, the Utah Air Quality Board adopted a Designated Facilities Plan to address Mercury Emissions at Coal-Fired Electric Generating Units (EGUs.) This Plan, in association with a number of other Rules adopted by the Board (R307- 210, 220, and 224), implements the federal Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) for the State of Utah (excepting areas of Tribal jurisdiction.) Under the CAMR, Utah is allocated a mercury emission budget for each year beginning in 2010. In 2018, the budget changes from 0.506 to 0.200 tons per year. Compliance with these emission budgets will be demonstrated through a nation-wide Cap and Trade program administered by the EPA. In addition to the CAMR provisions, the Air Quality Board adopted a State-only rule (R307-424) that establishes minimum performance criteria for existing EGUs and requires that potential increases in mercury emissions from new or modified EGUs be offset (at a ratio of 1:1.1) by contemporaneous reductions of mercury emissions. These rules work together to set mercury emissions from EGUs in Utah on a downward trend.
- Clean Air Mercury Rule
- Designated Facilities Plan for Mercury Emissions at Coal Fired Electric Generating Units
- General Mercury Information
- R307- 210 Stationary Sources
- R307-220 Emission Standards: Plan for Designated Facilities and Add New Section IV, Plan for Mercury Emissions at Coal-Fired Electric Generating Units
- R307-224 Mercury Emission Standards: Coal-Fired Electric Generating Units
- R307-424 Permits: Mercury Requirements for Electric Generating Units
