Dec 18, 2006 12:50 pm US/Pacific
States Sue EPA To Save Lives
WASHINGTON (AP) ―
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The "fine particulate matter" in soot contributes to premature death, chronic respiratory disease and asthma attacks, said New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. (File).
AP
More than a dozen states sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday to lower soot levels from smokestacks and exhaust pipes, a move the state officials argue would save thousands of lives.
The states argue that the Bush administration is ignoring science and its own experts in refusing to slightly reduce the allowed threshold for soot. The "fine particulate matter" in soot contributes to premature death, chronic respiratory disease and asthma attacks, said New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. The pollution also leads to more hospital admissions and other public health costs, he said.
Officials from California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and the District of Columbia joined New York in the action filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington.
"It is unfortunate that this coalition of states must resort to legal action to get the EPA to do its job—protect the environment and the public health," said Spitzer, the Democratic governor-elect.
The EPA said it considered new research cited by the state officials. But the agency decided research that prompted a previous reduction was more reliable and didn't justify a further cut, according to EPA statements. The agency said it will consider the new studies in the next five-year review.
"Where the science was clear, we took clear action," said EPA spokeswoman Jennifer Wood. "EPA significantly strengthened the previous daily standard—by nearly 50 percent."
"EPA has not followed the clean air law," countered New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, a Republican. "My office will work in conjunction with ... other concerned states to ensure that EPA takes appropriate action."
The emissions, described as much smaller than a grain of sand, come from automobiles, power plants, factories and wood fires.
The states want to reduce the current limit of 15 micrograms of soot allowed per cubic foot of air. States say even a reduction of 1 microgram would save as many as 11,000 lives. They don't agree on a specific amount to cut the limit.
The federal Clean Air Act requires a review every five years to determine if air pollution standards should be adjusted. The states argue this compels the EPA to act. The states want the federal court to find the EPA failed to obey its "Congressional mandate to protect the environment and the public health," according to a statement from Spitzer's office.
Last week, a group called Earthjustice, which includes the American Lung Association, the American Medical Association and Environmental Defense, sued the EPA over the same issue.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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