The Israel Electric Corporation said Wednesday that pollution from its power stations had continued to drop in 2009 as compared to previous years. Sulfur dioxide dropped 6%, nitrogen oxide by 4%, particles dropped 12% and carbon dioxide 4.5%. The IEC attributes the drop to running more power stations on natural gas instead of fuel and diesel oil. Injecting salt-free water into the burners in those power stations still running on diesel also reduced pollution. Earlier in the week, the Environmental Protection Ministry ordered the IEC to reduce coal dust at its Orot Rabin plant in Hadera. The IEC responded on Wednesday by announcing that it is currently investing millions of dollars to clean up that particular plant.