EPA Proposal To Ease Smog Controls

Under the new plan, the EPA would eliminate some of the strictest regulations that are traditionally part of the organization's agenda. Whitman's proposed plan would put aside a number of goals, including one to reduce mercury emissions, another to reduce Midwestern plant emissions, and another to restore visibility at national parks. A measure, known as new source review, which requires the installation of pollution controls whenever plants are expanded, would also be eliminated. Whitman defended the changes, arguing that condensing the programs into one strategy would work better than the present rules. Whitman's new plan includes implementing wide-scale market-incentive programs, many of which have shown mixed results in the past. Debate over changes to the Clean Air Act will soon move to Congress, where many lawmakers—both Democratic and Republican—have been distancing themselves from the Bush administration's environmental policies.

Thanks to California 2000 Project