Texas has a big haze problem. Saharan dust plagues us every year, and soot from agricultural fires can sometimes darken the Austin skyline – but those are only temporary, if recurring nuisances.
The more insidious culprits are the 12 dirtiest coal plants in the state, which together contribute to more sulfur dioxide emissions than all of the sources in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Oklahoma combined. Texas on its own is responsible for approximately 16% of the total SO2 emissions from the entire U.S. power sector, according to the Sierra Club.
“This isn’t because Texas’ power plants are the largest in the country,” explained Sierra Club attorney Josh Smith in a press briefing last week. “It’s primarily because a number of them lack industry standard, cost-effective pollution controls.”…