"EPA Carbon Emissions Plan Could Save Thousands of Lives, Study Finds"

"WASHINGTON — New carbon emissions standards that were proposed last year for coal-fired power plants in the United States would substantially improve human health and prevent more than 3,000 premature deaths per year, according to a new study.

The study, led by researchers at Syracuse and Harvard Universities, used modeling to predict the effect on human health of changes to national carbon standards for power plants. The researchers calculated three different outcomes using data from the Census Bureau and detailed maps of the more than 2,400 fossil-fuel power plants across the country.

The model with the biggest health benefit was the one that most closely resembled the changes that the Environmental Protection Agency proposed in a rule in June. Under that plan, reductions in carbon emissions for the plants would be set by states and would include improvements to the energy efficiency of, for example, air-conditioners, refrigerators and power grids."

Sabrina Tavernise and Coral Davenport report for the New York Times May 4, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"Scientists: EPA’s Curbs on Coal-Burning Will Save Thousands of Lives" (Washington Post)