The PGE power plant in Boardman, OR was built just as the Clean Air Act was being implemented and currently operates without any pollution control devices to reduce dangerous emissions, despite court admissions that the plant should be regulated under the Act.  As a result, the Boardman power plant is one of the major sources linked to air pollution in the Gorge, obscuring views and emitting significant levels of nitrogen oxide, sulfur oxide and mercury.
Exposure to mercury in all its forms can cause significant health effects in humans and wildlife. Mercury is a persistent, bio-accumulative toxin that remains active in the environment for more than 10,000 years. It endangers pregnant women, their fetuses, children, subsistence fishermen and recreational anglers.
In May of 2006, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) (Oregon’s regulatory agency responsible for protecting human and environmental health) was scheduled to adopt a Clean Air Mercury Rule.  Initially, the DEQ proposed adopting the controversial Bush Administration’s Mercury Rule, broadly known as an industry giveaway buried in fine print.  The proposal would have delayed any mercury regulation for 10 years and would have established a ‘cap and trade’ system where PGE could sell mercury credits to other states for a profit.
The DEQ was poised to adopt this flawed policy until they received an outpouring of public concern that forced the agency to write a new mercury rule.  Now, as the DEQ works to finalize a mercury rule for the state, Friends is advocating that Oregon join 21 other states that have rejected the Bush Administration’s Mercury Rule.  The Oregon DEQ should adopt rules that require an aggressive mercury reduction timeline and reject any trading provision. 
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