TALLAHASSEE - Florida ranks among the 10 worst states in the amount of noxious chemicals spewed into the air from power plants, an environmental group said Tuesday while calling for tougher federal clean air standards.
The state is third in the nation in the amount of nitrogen oxides pumped into the air, behind only Ohio and Indiana, according to the Florida Public Interest Research Group.
Nitrogen oxides can help form smog or ground-level ozone, both of which can exacerbate the effects of respiratory illness.
Florida also ranked in the 10 worst states in power plant emissions of two other chemicals, sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide, according to the FPIRG report based on federal Environmental Protection Agency data.
The report looked at chemicals emitted by 62 Florida plants, which is more than in many other states.
FPIRG said 26 older plants in Florida should be retrofitted to clean up emissions, and it faulted President Bush's administration for not toughening laws to do that.
"We want to require older power plants to meet the same standards as new plants," said FPIRG spokeswoman Holly Binns.
The federal Environmental Protection Agency in August made it easier for older power plants and other factories to make major upgrades without installing new pollution controls.
Rules require new pollution devices when old plants do anything more than routine maintenance. The new rule broadens the definition of "routine maintenance," requiring fewer upgrades.
The Florida power plant that ranked worst for emissions in the FPIRG study was Progress Energy's Crystal River Plant, which was 16th in the nation in nitrogen oxide emissions, 16th in sulfur dioxide and 23rd in carbon dioxide.
Progress Energy spokesman Aaron Perlut pointed out that the plant meets all federal clean air standards and noted that emissions are relative to a plant's energy output. The coal and nuclear plant is the largest generating plant in the state.
Perlut said the company is continuing "to explore a variety of options on new clean-air technologies."
