As many as 36 mills across the U.S. and more than 20,000 primary pulp and paper industry jobs would be at risk of elimination due to the costs of implementing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) pending Boiler MACT and other air regulations, according to a new study by Fisher International, South Norwalk, Conn., USA. These job losses would amount to 18% of the primary pulp and paper industry workforce. The job losses rise to more than 87,000 if supplier and downstream industries are figured into the equation, and those losses would result in about $4 billion in reduced wages and $1.3 billion in lost state, local, and federal taxes (including FICA taxes).
The quantitative study, titled "Economic Impact of Pending Air Regulations on the U.S. Pulp and Paper Industry," was commissioned by the AF&PA, Washington, D.C., as a follow-up to its study released less than a year ago under a similar title. The 2011 update was necessitated by changed EPA proposals.
While the Fisher study focuses on the impact to the pulp and paper industry, the EPA’s proposed Boiler MACT rules also set emission limits for boilers and process heaters located at universities, in small municipalities, food product processors, furniture makers, federal facilities, and a wide range of manufacturers. The rule is so stringent that it could create serious disincentives for the use of renewable energy. It is currently being reconsidered by EPA.
The study also looked beyond the possible effect of the proposed Boiler MACT rule to include the entire suite of EPA air regulations. It found 38,060 potential jobs lost in the pulp and paper sector from those cumulative air regulations. Looking again at the additional impact felt along the supply chain and surrounding community, job losses from these regulations could reach as high as 161,755.
The full "Economic Impact of Pending Air Regulations on the U.S. Pulp and Paper Industry" study is available online.
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