Asthmatic Kids Will Breathe Easier Soon

This goes to show how much good can be done when a strong regulatory agency does not bow to industry pressure (or its bidders in Washington).

Today, for the first time in 40 years, U.S. EPA set a new limit for how much sulfur dioxide pollution can be in the air. The pollutant - which comes mostly from coal-fired power plants - contributes to the formation of soot and acid rain and exacerbates asthma and other respiratory problems.

The agency estimates the new limit will prevent 54,000 asthma attacks every year and up to 5,900 premature deaths, saving as much as $33 billion in health care costs. In those terms, the price tag to industry -- $1.5 billion by 2020 -- seems like chump change. (May I suggest the health care cost reform crowd start investing in the renewable energy business?)

The regulation works because it is based on years of scientific study and a recommendation by EPA's independent science advisory board -- not advice we could always rely on EPA to take in the past (ahem, President Bush). It sets a new maximum one-hour SO2 limit that guards against the most dangerous but short-term pollution spikes rather than less-effective daily and yearly standards.

The 60 U.S. counties (see pdf map) that now violate the new limit will now have a few years to whip themselves into shape.

EPA's moves did not come without a long fight. Today, is more than a decade after a court order, brought by a lawsuit by the American Lung Association, that forced EPA to make a ruling. In the past year, industries fought what they said was too costly a proposal. But EPA did not actually even set the standard as low as health advocates had ideally hoped for. Regardless, the American Lung Association said: "This standard offers the promise of real protection to the people who have breathed these fumes for far too long."

As counties now require polluters to install better emissions controls on their smokestacks, these and a host of other upcoming air and climate regulations are finally forcing utilities to consider retiring their oldest, dirtiest power plants, and are encouraging newer, efficient, and renewable technologies.

Here's a recent case-in-point: in a settlement for Clean Air Act violations, American Municipal Power made the "business" decision to shutter an Ohio coal-fired plant, rather than spend the money to upgrade the aging facility, opened back when Harry Truman was president.

EPA's authority to enforce the Clean Air Act, however, is now in question. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) plans next week to try to force a resolution through the Senate that would strip EPA of any authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. I'll blog about that later this week, but in the meantime check out this petition and fight against her "Dirty Air Act" proposal.

Photo credit: Flickr User net_efect