The EPA on Wednesday finalized its “good neighbor” plan, which aims to cut down on cross-state smog pollution from power plants and other industrial sources, despite a request to delay it from the chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
The plan will require 23 states to take steps to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides that form ground-level ozone, or smog, that make it difficult for downwind states to meet 2015 National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone. The agency estimated in a fact sheet that during the 2026 summer ozone season, the rule will reduce NOx emissions by approximately 70,000 tons.
