Emission standards compulsory for new thermal power plants

The Union Environment Ministry has reportedly been directed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) not to provide environmental clearance to any new thermal power plant unless they comply with emission standards notified in December 2015. The standards were suppossed to be implemented within a span of two years from the notification. As per the notification, the thermal power plant is divided into three categories – those installed before December 31, 2003, those installed after 2003 but before December 31, 2016, and those installed after January 1, 2017. The new standards are aimed at reducing the particulate matter (PM), SO2 and NOx emissions from thermal plants. These are said to be the leading sources of air pollution. The standards for particulate matter (PM) 50 mg/NM3 before 2015, the new standards prescribe 30 mg/NM3 for PM and 100 mg/NM3 for SO2 and NOx for all plants that come up after January 1, 2017. There were no standards for SO2 and NOx before these new standards were notified. The directions came up during a petition filed on the delay in implementing the standards and the resulting air pollution from thermal power plants across the country at the NGT.  The principal bench of NGT also directed the MoEFCC to not grant any environmental clearance to new thermal power plants unless they show mechanisms in place to implement and achieve the emission standards and water consumption requirements as stipulated in the new notification, said a statement from Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE). The petition also refers to the minutes of the expert appraisal committee (EAC) for thermal projects meetings which reveal that environmental clearance was granted to new thermal power plant projects but the new standards were not followed.