Power plants firing up coal once again.

• Position: Carbon Dioxide Emissions

After a major falloff in carbon dioxide pollution from coal-fired electric power plants of 13.1% between 200512, the first quarter of 2013 has seen an increase in COs emissions--a 7.1% jump in the first three months of 2013 compared to the same period last year, according to an Environmental Integrity Project analysis of data from the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Information Administration.

The previous drop in carbon dioxide emissions was due, in large part, to greater reliance on natural gas, the rapid development of wind energy, moderate demand, and the closure of aging coal plants to avoid pollution control requirements.

Global warming emissions from coal-based electricity are projected to continue to increase throughout 2013, as rising natural gas prices encourage more use of coal. The latest projections from the EIA indicate that coal-based generation will increase 8.7% this year compared to last, although it is not expected to return to the peak levels of five to 10 years ago.

Texas emitted the most tons of C[O.sub.2] in 2012 from its coal-based electricity generation: 251,000,000, virtually unchanged from 2005, and more than twice the amount emitted by electric generators in any other single state. The second worst offender was Florida, followed by Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Ohio. These five states account for nearly one-third of total C[O.sub.2] emissions from power plants in the U.S. last year.

"As natural gas gets more expensive, coal is finding its way back into the U.S. electricity generation picture, and that means higher carbon dioxide emissions," explains Eric Schaeffer, EIP director. "Although power companies plan to retire 45 gigawatts of coal capacity through 2016 due to low natural gas prices, the increased availability of renewables, moderate demand, and the cost of complying with long delayed Clean Air Act rules, a change in just one of those factors can encourage plant operators to squeeze more generation out of remaining coal plants."

The Energy Information Administration projects that natural gas prices will increase about 34% above 2012 levels while prices for coal remain flat, making it attractive to power companies with the capacity to switch to...