The 'Dirty Dozen' of greenhouse gas polluters: See which Central PA sites made the list
A new report found that nearly 13.5% of all greenhouse gas pollution in Pennsylvania comes from the Midstate, mostly from power plants that burn fossil fuels.
The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center released a report Tuesday saying Pennsylvania was the fourth-largest greenhouse gas-emitting state in the nation in 2020. The commonwealth is one of America’s largest sources of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, which comes from the burning of fossil fuels and methane, according to center officials.
"More than 40% of the commonwealth’s greenhouse gas pollution comes from 287 industrial facilities, power plants, mines and other large polluters that are required to report their emissions to the U.S. EPA," The report states. "Among those facilities, just 12 — Pennsylvania’s “Dirty Dozen” — account for nearly one-fifth of the commonwealth’s total climate pollution."
According to the report, 12 facilities released nearly 46 million metric tons of greenhouse gasses in 2021. This is the equivalent of the 18% of the state’s total greenhouse gas emissions in 2020.
The York Energy Center in Delta, owned by Volt Parent LLC, was number six on the list, reporting 3.1 million metric tons of greenhouse gases a year.
"(The) 1,449-megawatt methane gas and fuel oil power plant was the number one source of greenhouse gas in the region, releasing emissions equivalent to the annual average of more than 670,000 cars," officials said in the release.
In the Harrisburg, Lancaster-York region, five York facilities were listed producing greenhouse gases for a total of more than 6.3 million metric tons. Facilities listed in the report included York County Resource Recovery in Manchester Township, Magnesita Refractories in York, Brunner Island power plant in York Haven, Pixelle Specialty Solutions in Spring Grove and York Energy Center.
The Helix Ironwood power plant in Lebanon was listed forth for the region in the same report, releasing more than 1.7 million metric tons of greenhouse gasses.
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The worst climate polluter in Pennsylvania in 2021 was the Keystone Generating Station, in Plumcreek Township, Armstrong County, which totaled almost 7.3 million metric tons. Officials said that was equivalent to 724,000 trips around the earth in an average gasoline-powered passenger vehicle.
The region that created the most greenhouse gas emissions was the Pittsburgh and southwestern region, accounting for 44% in the state. The Harrisburg, Lancaster-York region made up 13.5% of emissions.
Among the centers' recommendations to reduce the commonwealth's overall greenhouse gas emissions included accelerating the transition to renewable energy sources, continuing commitment to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and finalizing federal standards to cut carbon emissions from power plants.
"Pennsylvania should commit to obtaining at least 30% of its electricity from clean, renewable sources by 2030 on the way to powering the commonwealth with 100% renewable energy by 2050." officials said in the report.
See the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center's report at environmentamerica.org.
Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on Twitter at @DAMattToth
This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: See which Central Pa. sites made 'Dirty Dozen' list of polluters
