In this edition:
- A new report examining the air quality and health benefits expected under the Clean Power Plan
- Analysis on the impacts of removing the US crude oil export ban
New Report on Health Benefits of the Clean Power Plan
The American Lung Association has released its State of the Air 2015 report, which reveals that about 40 percent of Americans live in counties that have “unhealthy levels of either ozone or particle pollution.” The report endorsed a number of actions aimed at improving US air quality, including the adoption of a “strong final Clean Power Plan” with “tough final requirements.”
In a new report published today in Nature Climate Change, researchers from RFF, Harvard University, Boston University, Syracuse University, and the Science Policy Exchange examine the health benefits of strong emissions standards under the Clean Power Plan. The report—which represents the “first independent, peer-reviewed paper of its kind”—analyzes three options for a carbon standard. The researchers conclude that the top option could prevent about 3,500 premature deaths per year in the United States. RFF Senior Fellow Dallas Burtraw highlights the study and key findings in a new blog post.
Oil Export Ban Assessed
Amid renewed scrutiny of the US crude oil export ban, US oil companies are emphasizing that the “international price of oil would fall and gasoline would likely follow suit” if the ban were lifted, thanks to the movement of US crude stockpiles into the world market. Support for the ban’s elimination is “being undermined by US refiners” seeking to keep the light, sweet crude produced by shale drillers from being processed abroad.
In a new blog post, RFF Visiting Fellow Charles Mason reiterates that “this light oil is a mismatch” to current US refinery configurations, “forcing sellers of light oil to accept dramatic price discounts.” Mason writes: “[T]he main effect of the ban is to force sellers of light tight oil from the Bakken, Eagle Ford, and Permian basins to sell their oil at prices below the level that would be commanded on global markets. This discount benefits Midwestern refiners, but not US gasoline consumers. Lifting the ban would lead to increased tight oil production and lower gasoline prices.”
