During the Last Government Shutdown, Coal Pollution Spiked

With U.S. lawmakers still at an impasse over spending, the government remains shut down, with thousands of federal workers furloughed. Researchers warn that during the last shutdown, in 2018, pollution from coal power plants spiked in the absence of government oversight.

For more than a month between December 2018 and January 2019, the Environmental Protection Agency sidelined close to 600 inspectors, and power plant operators appeared to take full advantage. For a new analysis, researchers combined data on pollution, power generation, and weather for more than 200 coal plants across the U.S., finding that particulate pollution jumped between 15 and 20 percent as soon as the shutdown began and returned to normal as soon as the shutdown ended.

“The pattern was clear: When the EPA stopped watching, coal plants increased pollution,” study authors wrote in The Conversation. “And once inspections resumed, emissions dropped back to normal.” The findings were published in the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.

Researchers say that plant operators probably turned off devices that filter out particulates. Those devices use a great deal of power, and during the shutdown, operators could save money by turning them off without risk of being caught and fined.

The EPA staff has been shrinking for decades, but departures have accelerated since President Trump returned to office in January. The new study, authors say, highlights how “without strong and continuous monitoring and enforcement, environmental laws risk becoming hollow promises.”