Washington – The Environmental Protection Agency proposed stricter daily limits Tuesday for how many microscopic particles of air pollution, or soot, are safe for all Americans to breathe from the nation’s smokestacks and tailpipes.
The proposed health-based air standards represent one of government’s most far-reaching decisions. They affect millions of lives and could force states to make industries spend billions of dollars to clean up coal-burning power plants, diesel-powered equipment, trucks and boilers.
Health and environmental groups had sued the government to force it to tighten its limits. Meeting a court-ordered deadline of midnight Tuesday, the EPA ignored the recommendations of an expert clean air scientific advisory committee, which in June called for tougher limits.
Once the EPA finishes its rule-making next September, states must order cleanups in at least 50 counties, mainly in southern California, the Midwest, the South and the Northwest, EPA studies show.
Stephen Johnson, the EPA administrator, said his decisions were based on “the best science available to date … particularly for the most vulnerable among us,” despite the science advisers’ recommendation for a tougher standard. He did not elaborate.
Johnson said he recognizes that the science continues to evolve, so his agency would continue to review new scientific findings before it issues a final rule. The EPA also will allow for 90 days of public comment. “This proposal is yet another step to ensure that Americans have cleaner air and healthier lives,” he said.
At stake are public health standards addressing fine pollution particles 2.5 micrometers or smaller, which lodge in people’s lungs and blood vessels.
