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Mercury Overview Mercury is a developmental toxin that can affect babies developing in the womb and, at much higher doses, can lead to serious health effects for adults. Coal-fired power plants are the largest single man-made source of mercury pollution in the country and the largest unregulated source of mercury in the United States. Every year, one in six women of childbearing age in the United States has mercury levels in her blood high enough to put her baby at risk. That means, nationwide, as many as 630,000 infants are born every year with unsafe mercury levels.1 The primary exposure pathway for most Americans is through consumption of fish with high levels of methyl mercury, the toxic form of mercury that accumulates in seafood. In 2003, forty-five states and territories had fish advisories for local waterways.2 Coal-fired power plants are the largest single man-made source of mercury pollution in the country3 and the largest unregulated source of mercury in the United States. When the plants release mercury into our air, it rains down into our lakes, rivers and streams. The toxic mercury then makes its way to our dinner tables via contaminated fish. Americans want the federal government to protect the health and safety of our communities. But in March 2005, the EPA finalized a plan that lets power plants spew three times the amount of mercury pollution into our air for decades longer than strong enforcement of the Clean Air Act allows. The plan yields a reduction of only 43 percent by 2026, falling far short of the EPA's previously stated goal. The plan includes a cap-and-trade program that allows some power plants to buy or sell mercury pollution credits. Allowing individual power plants to acquire pollution credits rather than reduce emissions would have the effect of creating "hot spots" and expose local residents to unsafe levels of mercury. Coal-fired power plants reap the benefits of this trading scheme while the residents living in the areas near the plants lose out as they are exposed to even more hazardous air pollution. There Are Solutions According to the EPA's own estimates, there are commercially available technologies in use today that achieve more than 90 percent mercury emissions reductions. 4 The technology is affordable. The cost of installing the technology would amount to a one to three percent increase in monthly electric bills.5 This cost translates to the cost of a cup of coffee per month for residential users -- $1 to $3 in the worst case scenario, depending on the state. 6 Citations U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Methylmercury: Epidemiology Update, Presentation by Kathryn Mahaffey, PhD at the National Forum on Contaminants in Fish, San Diego, CA (January 25-28, 2004). US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, "National Listing of Fish," EPA-823-F-03-003 (August 2004). EPA Fact Sheet, "EPA to Regulate Mercury and Other Air Toxics Emissions from Coal- and Oil-Fired Power Plants" (December 14, 2000) Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM), "Mercury Emissions from Coal-Fired Power Plants," (October 2003) National Wildlife Federation, October 2004. Getting the Job Done: Affordably Achieving 90% Mercury Control from Power Plants. Ibid Photo: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL); used with permission. Up to Top