Analysis Of Dynamic, Flexible Nox And So2 Abatement From Power Plants In The Eastern U.S. And Texas

Federal standards for fine particulate matter and tropospheric ozone have become increasingly stringent over the past several decades. States preparing attainment plans will be challenged with accounting for the regional and longer-range transport of these pollutants and their precursors and with the higher marginal costs of additional permanent or annual emissions reductions in the future. This study will develop methods for evaluating the air quality impacts and cost-effectiveness of time-differentiated trading of nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide from electric generation units. Two markets will serve as case studies: the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which is an intra-state grid, and the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland (PJM) grid, which is an inter-state grid. The following hypothesis will be tested: Time-differentiated dispatching strategies lead to reductions in ozone and fine particulate matter concentrations and exposure that are comparable to other technologies. Hybrid scenarios that combine time-differentiated trading and other technologies within a single electric grid provide more cost-effective control and greater air quality benefits than a single approach. The effectiveness of emissions trading strategies is sensitive to the selection of an air quality impact metric. An emissions pricing strategy can be developed that optimizes the joint abatement of multiple pollutants by considering the integrated impact.