shu t t ersto c k
Clean Air: EPA rule curbs pollutants
from power plants in eastern U.S.
S
mog and fine particulate pollution in the
eastern half of the U.S. will be slashed under a rule EPA released last week to curb power plant emissions that blow across state lines. EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson says the new rule is “designed to prevent the drift of harmful, airborne pollution from a source in one state to the air people are breathing in communities in another state.” The regulation affects 28 states, mainly in the East and Midwest. Starting in 2012, power plants in 23 states from Texas to New York must curb emissions of sulfur dioxide, a component of fine particulate pollution. They must also reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx), which are precursors to ground-level ozone, or smog, and contribute to fine particulate pollution. The rule, along with state actions, will reduce SO2 by 73% and NOx by 54% from 2005 levels by 2014. Meanwhile, power plants in another five states must
Companies Eye Russian Links Partnerships: Drug and chemical
firms scope out the landscape in a market primed for growth
P
fizer has joined other major drug and chemical companies in investigating the fast-growing Russian market. The firm has signed a memorandum of understanding with ChemRar High Tech Center, a Russian pharmaceutical investment and R&D group, to explore drug development and commercialization opportunities in Russia and other countries. The agreement identifies possible technology transfer and licensing deals by which the two organizations can develop compounds and vaccines to treat patients with cardiometabolic and infectious diseases and cancer. “We see Russia as a potential leader in the innovative pharmaceutical, biotechnological, and nanotechnological areas,” says David Simmons, Pfizer’s general manager for emerging markets and established products. AstraZeneca, which earlier this year began construction on a $150 million manufacturing facility in Russia’s Kaluga region, has announced plans for a Predictive Science Center in St. Petersburg. The new center will
reduce NOx during the summer, when ground-level ozone levels are highest. The new regulation replaces a rule issued under President George W. Bush in 2005. A federal court determined that the Bush regulation violated the Clean Air Act. The court ordered EPA to start from scratch, but allowed the 2005 rule to remain in place as a stopgap. EPA estimates that by 2014 the rule will yield $120 billion to $280 billion in annual health and environmental benefits. It is projected to cost power plants $800 million a year in operational compliance and the equivalent of $1.6 billion annually for 30 years in investments in pollution control equipment. The rule is attracting mixed reactions. S. William Becker, executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies, welcomes the rule but says it falls short of helping downwind states meet the national air quality standards for ozone and particulates. Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), says the rule, along with an upcoming EPA regulation to control mercury from power plants, “could force the retirement of 30 to 100 gigawatts of coal-fired power plants,” raise the price of electricity, and eliminate jobs.—Cheryl Hogue
focus on developing bioinformatics, data analysis methods, and software to better predict the safety and efficacy of potential new medicines. According to Kay Formanek, a managing director at the consulting firm Accenture, the Russian government has invested about $54 billion in the health care and life sciences sectors under its National Health Project, an effort to improve public health. She notes that a draft bill on patent protection that grants six years of exclusivity for new drugs was approved last year. Such changes “create a context that is attractive for pharmaceutical companies that see stagnation in their mature markets and are looking to new territories for growth,” Formanek says. The chemical industry is also looking to tap Russia’s market and talent pool. DSM, for example, just finalized two joint ventures between its engineering plastics division and KuibyshevAzot OJSC, a chemical company in the Samara region that specializes in caprolactam and derivatives as well as nitrogen fertilizers. And Dow Chemical has signed a letter of intent to define steps for its participation in the Skolkovo Project, a Russian science and technology commercialization venture.—Rick Mullin
www.ce n- onli ne .org
EPA’s rule is designed to cut pollution in states downwind from coal-fired power plants.
Dow C hemical
Clearing Skies
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J uly 1 1 , 20 1 1
Viktor Vekselberg (left), president of the Skolkovo Foundation, and Kostas Katsoglou, president of Dow in Eastern Europe.
