SPIKE IN UTILITY SO2 EMISSIONS PROMPTS CRITICISM OF TRADING PROGAMS

EPA's new report showing a 4 percent increase in sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions from power plants in 2003 -- the first time acid rain emissions have increased since 1998 -- is drawing criticism from environmentalists over the benefits of emissions trading programs. EPA officials said the 400,000-ton spike, detailed in an EPA report on acid rain emissions, is due to utilities using long-held "banked" credits -- an incentive Congress gave the companies in the early 1990s for making additional emission...